A civil society organisation, the Centre for Democratic Integrity and Leadership has accused political enemies of orchestrating a smear campaign against the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, over fresh allegations of illegal land allocations to his children.
The group’s position follows Wike’s latest denial of claims linking him to controversial land deals, which he described as baseless and politically motivated attempts to derail his reforms in Abuja.
In a statement issued on Tuesday by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communications and Social Media, Lere Olayinka, the minister dismissed the allegations as baseless and mischievous.
SAAMEDIA.INFO recalls that the minister had earlier denied reports stating that he had allocated 2,082 hectares of land in Maitama and Asokoro to his son through a farming company, Joaq Farms and Estates Limited.
Responding to allegations of another purported allocation of lands to another son, Olayinka accused unnamed political actors of orchestrating a smear campaign against the minister, adding that such efforts would not derail Wike’s ongoing developmental initiatives under the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Tinubu.
“As usual, this sponsored blackmail has failed. Those seeking to blackmail the FCT minister will need to put in more effort.
“Nothing will stop him from continuing with his developmental efforts in the FCT in accordance with President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope agenda,” he added.
The media aide argued that the previous report alleging the allocation of 2,082 hectares of land had no solid evidence, stating that everyone, including the minister’s children, has a constitutional right to own property anywhere in the country if they meet legal requirements.
“Last week, it was unfounded and poorly carried out propaganda of Wike allocating 2,082 hectares of land in Asokoro and Maitama to one of his sons, even when no such land is available in the two districts combined.
“They used a document showing the allocation of land for farming in Bwari Area Council to a company, JOAQ Farms, to justify the falsehood.
“This week, there are tales of allocation of land to another son of the minister because documents showed allocation of lands to a company, Jordan Farms.
“Even though like other Nigerians, it is the rights of children of the minister, his friends, associates and relatives to own lands anywhere in the country, including the FCT, provided all necessary conditions are met, as of today, no land has been allocated to any of the minister’s children,” he said.
He further clarified that although land was indeed allocated to Jordan Farms and Estates Limited, the company is a legally registered Nigerian entity with no ties to any of the minister’s children.
“No doubt, the land was duly allocated to Jordan Farms and Estates Limited, a company duly registered in Nigeria, with none of the children of the FCT minister as director of the company.
“That one of the sons of the FCT minister is Jordan and there is a company, Jordan Farms and Estates Limited is no reason anyone should conclude that the company belongs to Wike’s son.
“Records of ownership of the company are available at the Corporate Affairs Commission and we challenge purveyors of these stories to publish names of the company owners,” he said.Related News
Olayinka added, “For instance, my name is Lere Olayinka, and there is Lere Local Government in Kaduna State. Do I own the Local Government? Am I even from Kaduna State?
“There are companies like Jordan Telecommunications, Jordan Foods, etc. Are they also owned by Wike’s son? In the United Kingdom, there is Jordan’s Farms. Is the company also owned by Wike’s son?”
He also took a swipe at one of the minister’s critics, alleging political vendetta, stating, “Let that fellow from Adamawa State, who is struggling to get at the FCT minister for supporting power rotation between the northern and southern parts of Nigeria put in more efforts.
“This is because, just like the one of last week, this one too has failed even before its commencement.”
While commending the minister for his exceptional performance, the Centre for Democratic Integrity and Leadership cleared him of any wrongdoing in the administration of land in Abuja.
The civil society organisation described the allegations as “politically charged” and “highly irresponsible,” asserting that they lacked context and credibility.
Speaking at a press conference on Tuesday, the group’s representative, Kelvin Kuhwa, stated that Wike had demonstrated “extraordinary leadership and administrative rigour” since assuming office, transforming infrastructure and land management in the FCT.
Kuhwa highlighted Wike’s achievements, including the renovation of the International Conference Centre, the establishment of intra-city rail and bus terminals, and the resurfacing of internal roads.
The organisation said land administration had been subjected to stringent reforms, with dormant allocations and illegal land grabs being revoked and reallocated to individuals and entities committed to utilising the land productively.
Addressing the allegations, CDIL clarified that there was no legal prohibition against allocating land to a legitimate company regardless of its directors.
It stressed that due process was followed in the allocation of land to Joaq Farms and Estates Ltd.
“The smear campaign against Wike was orchestrated by entrenched interests who have lost access to the previous regime’s favouritism and were resistant to the minister’s reforms,” the CSO said.
Kuhwa remarked that Wike’s outstanding performance was seen as a threat by some individuals within President Bola Tinubu’s administration.
The statement added, “Since he assumed office, Mr Wike has shown extraordinary leadership and administrative rigour. From neglected roads and infrastructure decay to bureaucratic indifference and fiscal leakages, the FCT was a textbook example of government dysfunction.
“Under Wike’s stewardship, the nation’s capital has witnessed a rapid, visible, and measurable reversal of these trends.
The group urged Nigerians to reject “toxic reporting” and appreciate Wike’s record of rebuilding the capital and enforcing development standards.
