The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister, Nyesom Wike, on Tuesday, told visiting leaders of ethnic nationalities from Niger Delta, on Tuesday in Abuja, that he would not allow anyone hijack a political structure he had spent years, even decades, to build.
He also cautioned against reading ethnic meaning into the raging feud between him and Fubara, while hosting the leaders, who paid him a solidarity visit to.
The FCT minister was responding to comments by a former Special Adviser to President Goodluck Jonathan on Niger Delta Affairs and Chairman of the Presidential Amnesty Programme, Kingsley Kuku.
Kuku, during what he described as a solidarity visit to the former governor in Abuja, in company with other Niger Delta leaders, described Wike as the leader of the state, but also condemned the attempts to impeach Fubara.
However, Wike insisted that any politician whose base was usurped would automatically become irrelevant, explaining that he is not bothered about the allegations against him, especially on social media.
The FCT minister stated, “Everyone wants to be politically relevant. All of us want to maintain our political structures, so before you (Kuku) left this country, you had your political structure. Would you allow anybody to just come and take over?”
He added, “Everybody has a base. If you take my base, am I not politically irrelevant? You can say anything you want to say, at the appropriate time, we will know who is right and who is wrong.”
Wike advised his visitors to disregard allegations against him.
He said, “Don’t listen to social media, because I have seen all kinds of abuses, but I have said I won’t talk. I know it’s politics. They said oh, somebody asked that he should be given N20 billion and that he wants to award the whole contracts to himself. That’s politics.
“But nobody said this when I was fighting. So, if you like accuse me from here till forever. I won’t even have a sleepless night because as far as I am concerned, the right thing must be done.”
The minister, who stated that everything must be settled through negotiation, insisted that Nigeria remained a democracy, wherein people must learn to communicate, rather than resort to military tactics.
He said the country was not running a military government, maintaining that politics should be a “give and take” game, not the kind of politics being currently played.
Wike cautioned against attempts to read ethnic meaning into the disagreement between him and Fubara. He called politicians to always settle disputes amicably as a family matter.
He stated, “So, when things are wrong, you ask questions, that’s what leadership is all about. When you hear something, ask questions to know what’s going on or what happened, so you can also appraise (the situation).
“I don’t feel threatened by anybody, just tell the truth, and nothing but the truth. It is a party affair, and parties know how they resolve their issues using their mechanism.
“It is not an ethnic affair. That’s why we should ask questions, and be in position to now know the simple truth. Our party is looking into it. Every politician has his own interest, that is where I will stop.
“I don’t want to go into details. But, let us know that all of us are one. Nobody can win elections because of ‘I’m from here’, as you need the support of everybody.
“No one ethnic group will claim that they are responsible for some persons to be one thing or the other, it is not correct.
“It is not only when something favours us, then we are right, and when it doesn’t favour us, then we are wrong.”
Wike said he could not be threatened by anyone, but stated that he owed everything to Tinubu, who appointed him.
The Niger Delta delegation, led by Professor AW Obianime, included Managing Director of Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Dr Sam Ogbuku; Kuku; Chief Ayiri Emami; Chief Tony Okocha; and Elder TK Ogoriba.
The delegation used the occasion to warn controversial cleric, Ahmad Gumi, to desist from attacking the FCT minister, saying the minister has their confidence and is not a political orphan.
They accused Gumi of making satanic utterances that smacked of one fishing in troubled waters.
Obianime said, “Going further, Gumi should know that Barr. Wike is not a political orphan from the Niger Delta; he has a very strong socio-political base. So, we take very serious exceptions to the call for the minister’s sack and to the blackmail on the president with denial of electoral/political support in faraway 2027 should the president fail to do his unholy bidding.
“We wonder where Gumi has got the right and audacity to threaten the president. We also wonder what electoral value Gumi carries in Nigerian politics.”
Deji Elumoye, Chuks Okocha, Emmanuel Addeh, Olawale Ajimotokan, Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja and Wale Igbintade in Lagos
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