The Federal Government has debunked reports that it has renamed the Murtala Mohammed Expressway in Abuja after Nobel Laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka.

In a press statement signed by the Rabiu Ibrahim, the Special Assistant (Media) to the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, the Federal Government also said renaming the expressway had never been on the cards.

The statement said. “For the record, on June 4, 2024, President Bola Tinubu inaugurated a new road in the FCT codenamed Arterial Road N20 (from Katampe to Jahi), which links the existing Outer Northern Expressway (also known as Murtala Mohammed Expressway) to the Northern Parkway (also called Ahmadu Bello Way).

“During the inauguration of the N20 (which is a new road), FCT Minister, Barrister Nyesom Wike, proposed to the President that the road be named after Prof Wole Soyinka, and the President agreed.

“Therefore, it is the Arterial Road N20 that is named after Prof Soyinka. The Murtala Mohammed Expressway remains unchanged and continues to bear the name of our esteemed former Head of State, General Murtala Ramat Mohammed.”

Describing the report as false and misleading, the Federal Government urged Nigerians to disregard any misinformation regarding the renaming of the Murtala Mohammed Expressway.