Navy Remains Unresponsive Following Face-off Between Minister Nyesom Wike and Soldier

During a land inspection in the Gaduwa district of Abuja, Minister Nyesom Wike was prevented from entering a site by several military officers, escalating into a heated confrontation.

The minister did not take the obstruction lightly. He confronted one of the officers, accusing him of impunity. The officer explained that he was acting on orders from the former Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Zubairu Gambo.

Wike challenged the officers to produce legal documents to justify their claim, but they refused, insisting they were only following orders. When the minister pressed further, the officer pointed to a man standing near Wike as the recipient of the documents. The man immediately flared up, denying the claim and hurling insults at the soldiers.

Tensions rose quickly. A scuffle broke out between police officers, security personnel, and members of the military, lasting several minutes before things eventually calmed down.

The officer in charge placed a call and tried to explain the reason for the blockade, but Wike cut him off, unleashing a tirade of insults.

“You’re a fool. Shut up,” Wike said. “I will not shut up,” the officer responded, prompting a sharper retort from the minister. “You are a very big fool. As at the time I graduated, you were still in primary school.”

The officer maintained he was acting on official instructions.

“You will see if you will not leave here. Go and develop there and let me see,” Wike replied as the exchange intensified.

Wike further criticized the former naval chief, saying, “I don’t understand how somebody who attained that position, seeing that he has a problem, cannot approach my office to say, ‘Look, this is what’s going on,’ or simply because he is a military man, they could use that to intimidate Nigerians. I’m not one of those kinds of people who will succumb to blackmail.”

“Because you are an officer? Nobody does that. The man took land because he was the Chief of Naval Staff?” he added.

Despite the minister’s threats, the military officers refused to vacate the land, reiterating that they were acting based on official directives.

Following the confrontation, the Nigerian Navy has remained silent. When contacted for a response, Navy spokesman A. Adams-Aliyu simply said, “No reply for now.”

Wike’s outburst reflects a troubling lack of restraint and diplomacy from a public official. In a country where the poor and powerless are often caught in the crossfire of authority, watching two arms of government, the political and the military, clash over land ownership is disheartening.

Power, when unchecked, becomes its own form of impunity. And if those at the top can’t handle disagreements without hostility, what message does that send to the rest of the nation? Nigeria deserves better leadership, one that prioritises civility over ego.