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VIDEO: FCT Minister Nyesom Wike in Standoff With Soldiers Over Abuja Land Dispute
FCT Minister Nyesom Wike confronted armed soldiers at a disputed Gaduwa land site in Abuja, alleging illegal occupation linked to a former naval chief. Wike vowed not to bow to military intimidation as tensions rise over land governance in Nigeria’s capital.
ABUJA — A tense confrontation unfolded on Tuesday afternoon when Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, and officials of the FCT Administration (FCTA) were blocked by soldiers from accessing a disputed parcel of land in the Gaduwa District of Abuja.
The property in question, Plot 1946, Gaduwa, is alleged to be under development without valid title documents or approval of building plans. According to Wike, FCTA officials had been sent to enforce a stop-work directive when they were confronted by armed military personnel.
“You have no document,” Wike told the soldiers during the exchange. “You cannot be higher than any government. You cannot be carrying a gun to intimidate anybody. I am not one of those that they can intimidate.”
In the video footage circulating online, a soldier guarding the site stands his ground, saying:
“Sir, everything was acquired legally. I am an officer with integrity.”
The veteran minister responded with frustration:
“You’re a big fool. As at the time I graduated, you were still in primary school.”
Wike claimed that the armed personnel at the site indicated they were acting on orders from a former Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Awwal Zubairu Gambo (retired). He said the FCTA’s records revealed no valid allocation, acquisition document, or building permit for the property.
“I don’t understand how someone who attained that position cannot approach my office to say: ‘Look, this is what is going on’. But simply because he’s a military man, he thinks he can use that to intimidate Nigerians. I’m not one of those kinds of people who will succumb to blackmail or intimidation,” Wike said.
The minister said he personally contacted the Chief of Defence Staff and the Chief of Naval Staff, who reportedly assured him of intervention. He emphasised that his administration would not allow the use of military force to obstruct lawful government action or enable illegal land acquisition.
At press time, neither the Nigerian Army nor the FCTA had issued an official statement regarding the incident. Observers say the clash highlights growing friction between civilian land-use enforcement agencies and military-linked interests in the capital, raising concerns over the rule of law and land governance in the FCT.
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