The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister, Nyesom Wike, has described activist and African Action Congress (AAC) presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore, as “lucky” that President Bola Tinubu respects the rule of law.
Wike’s comments come after Sowore had on August 25 described President Tinubu as a “criminal” on social media, citing a video from the President’s visit to Brazil where Tinubu claimed there was no corruption in Nigeria.
“This criminal @officialpbat actually went to Brazil to state that there is no more corruption under his regime in Nigeria. What audacity to lie shamelessly!” Sowore had tweeted.
Following the tweet, the Department of State Services (DSS) filed criminal charges against Sowore for defamation, accusing him of making “false” statements that violate Nigeria’s Cybercrimes and Terrorism Prevention laws.
The DSS also demanded that social media platforms X and Meta remove the post, warning that it posed a threat to national security and public order.
Sowore, however, refused to delete the tweet, describing the DSS action as “despicable” and an attempt to silence dissent.
Speaking during the flag-off of the construction of Arterial Road N1 in Wuye on Thursday, Wike said, “This is a country where somebody on social media will say Mr. President is a criminal; nothing will happen. You are lucky you have a President who believes in the rule of law. You are lucky. Continue to be lucky. There are those you will meet that you won’t be lucky again.”
He added, “No matter how people criticise Trump, have you ever seen any American citizen on social media, or in the public, say our President is a criminal? Have you heard that? But here, anybody can wake up in the morning and abuse the President, and we are happy.”
Wike also addressed the ongoing strike by the FCT Chapter of the Association of Resident Doctors, revealing that the 2025 FCT budget has allocated N25 billion for the health sector. However, he emphasized that the payment of allowances and employment of doctors must follow due procedure, urging the medical professionals to exercise patience.
“The SSS called me that people said they will demonstrate… demonstration is allowed everywhere. Nobody will blackmail me, nobody will stop me from doing what I think is right,” he said.
The minister further warned against politicizing the FCT Civil Service, saying, “If you want to enter political party A, you’re free to enter political party A and face me when the time comes. Don’t use Civil Service to play politics, no.”
