Lawyer and public affairs analyst, Liborous Oshoma, has criticised the Federal Capital Territory Minister, Nyesom Wike, over his constant political controversies and inflammatory public statements, warning that his conduct could be damaging to the presidency.
Speaking during an interview on ARISE NEWS on Monday, Oshoma said the minister’s behaviour was drawing unnecessary political attention and distracting from governance. He remarked,
“If care is not taken, he might be the destructive factor of the president. Not everybody disagrees with the president, but a lot of people disagree with the manner and approach of his minister for FCT.”
Oshoma expressed concern about the trend of prioritising politics over governance, especially in the nation’s capital.
“You can see we have elevated politics so high above governance that now anybody that wants to play politics, you don’t need to be meaningful, just hold the mic and people will listen,” he said.
He also questioned Wike’s performance as FCT Minister, particularly on infrastructure and public service delivery.
“Will 21 roads provide employment to your thriving population?” he asked. “The hospitals in FCT, as I speak to you now, I just read an article that most of the hospitals in FCT don’t have staff in their clinics.”
Reacting to Wike’s recent dismissal of the opposition coalition, Oshoma said the government should be more concerned with fulfilling its promises rather than issuing statements meant to delegitimise dissent.
“Just sit down and tell people, no, don’t take them seriously. They are destabilising. Because you are also destabilising,” he stated.
On developments in Rivers State, Oshoma maintained that political showmanship must give way to genuine governance.
“People, no matter what our misgivings are, some people are saying peace had returned to Rivers. So we want to see, at the end of the day, that not just peace returning, we also want to see that governance.”
Commenting on the sluggish pace of the judiciary in resolving important constitutional matters, Oshoma said,
“It is not every matter that should go to our Supreme Court. Somebody stole a chicken and then he’s convicted… to Court of Appeal and then to the Supreme Court.”
He lamented the delay in deciding critical political cases, adding that “politics have overtaken everything. And at the end of the day, it becomes an academic exercise.”
When asked about the ADC’s claim that its members were being intimidated, Oshoma disagreed, saying the real issue was lack of substance in their platform.
“The ADC has not truly shown… plans and programs that they would treat Nigerians better. So that’s why some persons are skeptical, not that people are intimidated,” he said.
Oshoma concluded that politicians in Nigeria are driven by self-interest, not ideology. “It’s about what is in it for me… if I join this opposition of those people that have lost out in the scheme of things, how will they be able to navigate back to power?”
Faridah Abdulkadiri
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