Mr Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP) in the 2023 elections, has described the altercation between the minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, and Lieutenant A.M. Yerima as a “national embarrassment” Peak Newspaper reports.
It was reported earlier that on Tuesday, November 11, videos surfaced online showing Wike in a heated argument with military personnel at a site in Abuja, the Nigerian capital city.
Reacting in a statement posted on his X (formerly known as Twitter) account on Wednesday, November 12, Obi stated that the confrontation, which has since gone viral, was “yet another unfortunate reflection of the growing institutional disorder in our country.”
In his statement Obi said, “The recent needless altercation between the FCT Minister, HE, Barr. Nyesom Wike and a Naval officer are yet another unfortunate reflection of the growing institutional disorder in our country. What should ordinarily be a routine civic encounter has, once again, become a national embarrassment— a typical example coming out of a ‘disgraced country’.”
“Should the military be used for purely civil operations? If proper protocols were in place, should a Minister’s intervention in such a matter be in such an indecorous manner? Shouldn’t there be clear boundaries between administrative authority and the duties of security agencies?”
“We must learn from this episode. It is time to rebuild a nation where institutions are stronger than individuals; where public office is exercised with humility and restraint; where the dignity of our uniformed officers and the rights of every citizen are upheld,” he concluded.
