The latest salvo in Nigeria’s ceaseless theatre of political mudslinging centres on the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, accused — yet again — of illicitly parcel‑ing out prime Abuja real estate to his offspring.
This time, the Centre for Democratic Integrity and Leadership (CDIL) has torn aside the veils of innuendo, branding the fresh allegations as a “politically charged” smear orchestrated by Wike’s rivals eager to derail his transformational agenda for the nation’s capital.
The genesis of the uproar lies in reports alleging that Joaq Farms and Estates Limited and Jordan Farms and Estates Limited — purportedly fronts for two of Wike’s sons — each received thousands of hectares in Maitama, Asokoro and beyond.
In a withering statement issued on 1 July 2025, Wike’s Senior Special Assistant on Public Communications, Lere Olayinka, dismissed the claims as “baseless and mischievous,” noting that neither Maitama nor Asokoro combined contain the 2,082 hectares cited in earlier reports.
“This sponsored blackmail has failed,” Olayinka declared. He challenged the culprits to produce documentary evidence of any unlawful allocation to the minister’s children, pointing out that legitimate companies routinely acquire land in the FCT when they meet legal criteria.
“Like other Nigerians,” he reminded critics, “children of the minister have a constitutional right to own property anywhere in the country if they fulfil necessary requirements”.
Yet beneath the current uproar lies a deeper narrative of reforms that have ruffled powerful feathers. Since his appointment in August 2023, Wike has embarked on an aggressive “sanitisation” of land administration in Abuja.
He revoked 165 Certificates of Occupancy for undeveloped plots — including those once reserved by former heavyweight politicians — and targeted 4,794 titles for non‑payment of ground rent spanning over 40 years, thereby seeking to net some ₦7 billion in arrears.
These actions have transformed dormant, illegally grabbed allocations into revenue‑generating assets and spurred urban renewal across districts long plagued by decay.
The redevelopment of the International Conference Centre, now re‑branded the Bola Ahmed Tinubu Conference Centre, and the roll‑out of intra‑city rail and bus terminals are tangible hallmarks of Wike’s Renewed Hope Agenda for Abuja.
It is precisely this reformist zeal that CDIL’s Kelvin Kuhwa suggests has provoked vested interests to strike back.
“Entrenched players who thrived under the former regime’s favouritism,” Kuhwa asserted, have mobilised these smear tactics in a bid to reclaim lost privileges and halt progress.
Indeed, land in Abuja — sprawling over approximately 8,000 km² and housing a projected 4 million residents — is among the country’s most prized assets.
Districts like Maitama and Asokoro, adjacent to the Three Arms Zone, command exorbitant valuations and remain largely inaccessible to all but the elite. Accusations of misallocation in such zones carry explosive political currency, regardless of their veracity.
Critically, the legal framework under the Land Use Act 1978 imposes stringent processes for land allocation, revocation and transfer.
CDIL, in its defence of Wike, emphasised that allocations to Joaq Farms and Jordan Farms followed due process, and that the mere overlap between corporate names and ministerial family members is no proof of impropriety.
As the capital buzzes with speculation, one thing is clear: Wike’s defenders will need to remain resolute.
The minister’s unflinching stance — combined with CDIL’s public backing — suggests he is prepared to press on with his infrastructural crusade, even if it means facing down a barrage of politically motivated allegations.
For a global audience weary of recycled scandals, this episode underscores a familiar truth: in Nigeria’s high‑stakes arena of power, reformers routinely clash with interests invested in the status quo.
In the end, the true measure of Wike’s tenure will not be the volume of hushed accusations but the enduring impact of roads paved, conference halls restored and opaque land markets prised open to accountability.
Additional reporting by Atlantic Post writer Peter Jene.
