Wike abandons ministerial duties in Abuja for weeks because of Rivers politics

The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has left his duties unattended in Abuja for at least two weeks while continuing to tour local government areas in Rivers State, Nigeria’s South-South, because of 2027 politics.

Mr Wike, a former governor of Rivers State, described his ongoing tour of the state’s 23 local government areas as a “thank-you” visit. But at almost all the locations during the tour, he disclosed that it was all about the 2027 general elections, often telling a crowd why President Bola Tinubu should be supported to win re-election and why he (Wike) is against Governor Fubara of Rivers.

The Rivers House of Assembly initiated an impeachment process against Mr Fubara on Thursday, shortly after Mr Wike accused the governor of reneging on the terms of a peace deal brokered by the president.

The touring of LGAs and when it began

Mr Wike began public appearances in Rivers State on 26 December 2025 when he visited Akuku-Toru Local Government Area of the state during the conferment of a chieftaincy title on the Majority Leader of the Rivers House of Assembly, Major Jack.

Two days later, he embarked on what he termed a “special Christmas visit” to Emohua LGA.

By 30 December 2025, the FCT minister continued the “thank-you visit” to the Gokana Local Government Area of the state.

He visited Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni Local Government Area on 2 January before making a trip to Okrika Local Government Area of the state the following day.

He visited Ahoada West Local Government Area on 4 January 2026.

The following day, Mr Wike visited Oyigbo Local Government Area and Ogu/Bolo Local Government Area.

On 6 January, the FCT minister visited Degema Local Government Area.

His visits continued with a trip to the Asari Toru Local Government Area on 7 January. On the same day, he visited the Ahoada East Local Government Area.

On Thursday, Mr Wike showed no sign of resting, as evidenced by his visit to the Bonny Local Government Area.

The visit occurred barely an hour after Rivers House of Assembly began impeachment proceedings against Governor Fubara and the Deputy Governor, Ngọzi Odu.

The FCT minister continued his tour on Friday with his visit to Andoni Local Government Area.

He is scheduled to visit Obio/Akpor LGA on 11 January, according to a Facebook post by Martins Wachukwu, the media aide to the Speaker of the Rivers House of Assembly, Martin Amaewhule.

As of Friday, PREMIUM TIMES counted at least 20 LGAs he has already visited across Rivers between December and January.

Away from duties while FCT boils

While Mr Wike continues his tour in Rivers, workers under the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA), which he oversees, issued a seven-day ultimatum to the minister over “unresolved and long-standing” labour and welfare issues.

The ultimatum, issued by the Joint Union Action Congress, FCT, took effect from 7 January 2026.

The union President Rifkatu Iortyer, and its Secretary, Abdullahi Umar Saleh, disclosed this in a statement on Thursday.

They warned that they would consider embarking on a strike if their demands were not met.

The union said it copied top government officials, including the FCT minister of state, the chief of staff to the FCT minister, the head of service of the FCT, and the director of the State Security Service, in its notice of strike, with the hope that they would attend to the matter.

Some of the grievances listed by the workers included non-release of approved overhead costs for six months in 2025, non-payment of five months’ wage award arrears owed to the workers.

Others included alleged staff intimidation and harassment, restrictions on phone usage by staff of the FCT Geographic Information System, and the non-payment of enforcement officers, street sweepers and cleansers under the Abuja Environmental Protection Board and Satellite Development Services.

“Our members can no longer endure the continued denial of their legitimate entitlements,” the union said.

The union also accused the FCT administration of refusing to uphold financial autonomy and approved spending thresholds for permanent secretaries and heads of departments as well as agencies.

“The refusal to observe financial autonomy and constituted thresholds has undermined effective administration in the FCT,” it stated.

Wike’s abandonment of duty saddening – Lawyer

Inibehe Effiong, a human rights lawyer, argued it was saddening that the FCT minister would begin “political campaigns” by visiting local government areas in Rivers, while his duties are abandoned in Abuja.

“It saddens me that campaigns have not commenced, but you have the former governor (Wike) now going local government by local government basically campaigning ahead of next year 2027,” Mr Effiong said when he appeared on Channels TV’s The Morning Brief on Friday.

The Lagos-based lawyer also said Mr Wike has busied himself in Rivers while insecurity continued to worsen in the FCT where he serves as minister.

“In the same Abuja that he supervises as minister, a nurse was killed brutally; a lawyer was also killed. All within a space of a few days.

“Where is the minister of the FCT in the governance of the FCT? Why is he so obsessed with Rivers State?” he said.

Commenting on Mr Wike’s ongoing tour of Rivers, Paul Ibe, the spokesperson to a former Vice-President, Atiku Abubakar, accused the FCT minister of abandoning his duties in pursuit of leadership roles in both the APC and the PDP in Rivers.

“It is obvious that Nyesom Wike has abandoned his job as FCT minister in preference for 001 of both APC and PDP in Rivers,” Mr Ibe wrote in a Facebook post on Thursday.

Earlier on Monday, the National Secretary of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Ajibola Basiru, asked Mr Wike to resign as minister to focus on Rivers politics amid his alleged overbearing political influence in the oil-rich state.

Mr Basiru’s call for Mr Wike’s resignation came a few hours after the minister warned the APC secretary to steer clear of Rivers politics and desist from making “careless and provocative statements” about the state.

Mr Wike’s warning followed Mr Basiru’s criticism of Victor Giadom, the APC national vice chairman (South-South), for describing Mr Fubara as “so-called governor.”

The FCT minister, in a meeting with his supporters on Monday in Rivers, boasted that he can challenge anybody, and that Rivers State is “a no-go area” for “political interference.”

Presidency silent. Wike reacts

Bayo Onanuga, the spokesperson to President Bola Tinubu, did not respond to multiple calls and a text message seeking his comments.

When PREMIUM TIMES contacted the media aide to Mr Wike, Lere Olayinka, on Friday night, he said in “this digital age” the FCT minister did not need to be physically present in Abuja to perform his duties.

“If the minister is in Port Harcourt, does that mean he is not treating files? Is it not government files that can be treated anywhere? He is doing his job,” he said.

Mr Olayinka argued that although the recent killings of a nurse and a lawyer in the FCT were unfortunate, the rate of such killings in the nation’s capital had reduced unlike before Mr Wike became minister.

He said the minister’s ongoing tour of local government areas in Rivers did not amount to political campaigns.

“It is thank-you visits, not campaigns,” he insisted. (Premium Times)