…urges presidential intervention
The 2023 presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Dumebi Kachikwu, has warned that Nigeria is drifting into a dangerous era of public hostility toward government officials, where personal hatred, selective judgment, and mob sentiment increasingly overshadow the rule of law.
He said the controversy surrounding the recent confrontation between the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, and a military officer has exposed deeper national intolerance and a troubling willingness to justify illegality if the target is a disliked public figure.
Addressing journalists in Abuja on Friday, Kachikwu defended the Minister, saying the outrage was driven not by facts but by what he called “unrighteous, righteous indignation” rooted in longstanding resentment toward Wike.
He urged President Bola Tinubu to intervene swiftly, warning that the public reaction to the incident, combined with the conduct of some senior government officials, posed a threat to democratic order.
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He said the situation was worsened by the fact that the President’s aides, including the Minister of Defence, appeared to have “taken sides” against their colleague in a matter that required caution, context, and proper introspection.
According to him, if he were in Wike’s position and the Presidency failed to issue clear communication, he “would simply have resigned.”
Kachikwu insisted the military high command must take responsibility by probing the incident and disciplining the officer in line with military codes, saying the officer acted on the orders of a retired general outside the command structure of the Armed Forces.
He said the confrontation amounted to a serving officer undermining the authority of the FCT’s chief security officer and representative of the Commander-in-Chief.
While noting that the Minister should not have allowed himself to be provoked into strong personal remarks, he said the wider issue was the public’s willingness to “sanction illegality” simply because of their dislike for a particular official.
Recalling his own experience with the FCT Administration, the ADC candidate narrated how one of his construction sites came under pressure after guards denied an FCTA director access on a Sunday.
He said the episode led to a stop-work order and a visit from the Minister, which his workers feared would bring severe sanctions.
According to him, the matter was resolved only after he presented documentation, prompting the Minister to apologise for being misinformed.
He described that incident and the current controversy as examples of a “vocal minority” manipulating public sentiment.
Kachikwu argued that many Nigerians had allowed their dislike for the Minister to overshadow the fact that the military officer had verbally assaulted police officers during the incident, an issue he noted had not attracted the same outrage.
He said the bias extended to other national incidents, including the reported killing of policemen returning from election duty in Anambra State, which he said was met with public indifference and silence from senior officials who were now attacking the Minister.
Warning of the dangers of public distrust toward institutions, Kachikwu said failure to uphold constitutional authority could embolden abuses of power and normalize military interference in civilian matters.
His words, “The issue is that we need to go back to the drawing board. What is really at stake? The land has no valid documentation. Whatever is supposed to happen in situations like this should happen.
“If the Minister has discretion on what he chooses to do regarding the land, then fine. As for the officer, whatever applies under military law and civilian law in situations like this should also happen. Whatever needs to happen should happen.
“But my warning to Nigerians is this: if you allow a situation like this simply because you say you hate this minister, then tomorrow you will have sanctioned any level of illegality by military officers against civilians.
“You will have sanctioned it. We are in a democracy, a civilian dispensation. Where does military law and military rights end, and where does civilian authority begin in a democracy? We must be very, very clear about this.
“I’m happy that today people like Falana and Agbakoba are speaking up, because everyone is wondering what is going on here.
“We were all watching while some people were celebrating this, especially when you see the minister’s colleagues all jumping on the bandwagon, saying they support this illegality. Your colleague was humiliated while carrying out his official duties, and you are supporting that illegality.
“They are saying he ought to have reached out to the Chief of Defence Staff before carrying out his duties but the reality for me is this, I admit that if I were the one in that office and I saw all this rubbish going on, and there was no official communication from my boss or the presidency on the matter, I would simply have resigned. It has nothing to do with that officer.
“I would not stay one second and let my colleague rubbish me, or let a military officer rubbish me, in the course of carrying out my official duties. I would not do it. I would never do it.
“So the President must address this issue immediately. That is what we claim we are operating under. And if we are truly operating under that system, then everybody must subject themselves to the Constitution.
“The constitution is the interconnect for all of us. It supersedes everything else. You cannot claim, in a civilian dispensation and a democracy, that military codes of conduct should supersede the constitution of Nigeria.
“You derive your powers as military officers from that same constitution, and you cannot abuse that constitution. But that also does not give the minister the right to call him foolish, because I think that is where the main concern is.”
