The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has dismissed reports suggesting that his absence at the recent Council of State meeting was linked to a disagreement with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu over the nomination of Prof. Joash Amupitan as Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Speaking during the commissioning of access roads in Sector Centre B, Dakibiyu District, Abuja, on Tuesday, Wike clarified that he was absent due to prior official engagements and had duly authorized the Minister of State, Dr. Mariya Mahmoud, to represent him at the meeting.
“Sometime last week, Thursday, we had a flag-off event, and I told the Minister of State, FCT, to represent me at the Council of State meeting. I had already told Mr. President that I would not be available because of other engagements we had already put in place. That is why she represented the FCT in that meeting,” Wike stated.
The minister described claims that he deliberately boycotted the meeting because his alleged nominee for the INEC Chairmanship was ignored as “unnecessary propaganda and blackmail.”
He added: “We must be careful when people carry unnecessary propaganda and blackmail. Be focused; you will achieve your results. They said I did not attend because I was not happy that my nominee was not taken — that’s false.”
The clarification comes days after the October 9, 2025, Council of State meeting at which Prof. Amupitan was nominated by President Tinubu as the next INEC Chairman, pending Senate confirmation.
Some online media, including Sahara Reporters, had claimed that the development deepened tensions between Wike and the Presidency, alleging that the FCT Minister sought to push his own preferred nominee, Justice Abdullahi Muhammad Liman, of the Court of Appeal.
The report further suggested that Wike encouraged some state governors and stakeholders to boycott the meeting in protest — a claim the minister firmly denied.
“I work for Mr President. His judgment has always been about putting this country in the right perspective. When you start delivering, your achievements will silence all critics. Today, they have nothing again to say,” Wike declared.
He credited President Tinubu’s leadership for enabling the FCT Administration to deliver multiple infrastructure projects within a short period.
“I have always said that when you have the right leadership, you achieve the expected results. Mr President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, has shown that leadership. The reason we have been successful in Abuja is because of the direction from the top,” he said.
Wike’s comments appear aimed at quelling growing speculation about internal rifts within the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and reaffirming his loyalty to President Tinubu amid an increasingly heated political atmosphere ahead of the 2027 elections.
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Reporting by Naija247news in Lagos, Nigeria.
