Dare Babalola
Human rights activists, Deji Adeyanju, has weighed in on the recent face-off between FCT Minister Nyesom Wike and a naval officer, targeting a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, Joe Igbokwe, in the crossfire.
Adeyanju, in a post he made via Facebook on Wednesday, accused Igbokwe of opportunistically using the incident to jostle for a position, advising him to focus on his life rather than commenting on matters he allegedly doesn’t understand.
Adeyanju threw a jab at Lere Olayinka, Wike’s media aide, describing him as a mere cameraman.
“Dear Joe Igbokwe, appointment is finished already. Stop the hustling except you want to replace this cameraman. Doing media aide in old age is actually crazy. Old data boys!” Adeyanju wrote attaching a picture of Olayinka holding a phone to capture the minister.
The development follows Tuesday’s altercation between the FCT minister and a naval officer over a land dispute in Abuja.
The FCT minister, alongside senior officials from the Federal Capital Development Authority, visited the site to stop what he termed “illegal construction” and encountered a naval officer allegedly overseeing the project.
A viral video showed Wike visibly upset at the officer’s presence, asserting that no one, including military personnel, is above the law.
“You are in uniform, and you’re telling me that the Navy owns this land? Who gave you the right to build without approval? Even if you are the Chief of Naval Staff, the law must be respected,” Wike was heard saying in the video clip.
The officer, who has not been officially named by the Nigerian Navy, responded that the property belonged to a former service chief and that the military had authorisation to protect it.
Earlier, Igbokwe reacted to the clash, calling on the military to dismiss the officer over his conduct before the former Rivers State governor.
He wrote, “What this small boy displayed today has a million meanings. What frightens me is the reactions here. I have been reading what some people are saying here and I get more frightened. Who sent the small boy on this horrible mission? Of what meat is he fed?
“I am running away with the thinking that those lands were stolen. Take him out of the military asap. He represents evil. He was not well brought up.
“His so-called bravery is arrant nonsense, full of sound and fury signifying. Take him out. He represents evil. We call this principle of reverse psychology.”
