Ex-Naval Chief was Scammed – Wike’s Aide on FCT Minister-Military Clash

Lere Olayinka, Senior Special Assistant on Public Communications and Social Media to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has provided clarity on the face-off between his principal and some military officers over a disputed land in Abuja.

Speaking on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily on Wednesday, Olayinka explained that the land in question originally belonged to Santos Estate Limited, which had been allocated the property in 2007 for parks and recreation purposes. He disclosed that former Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Awal Gambo, became a victim of a scam after purchasing portions of the land from the company, which had partitioned and sold it without proper authorization.

“The company wrote to the FCTA in 2022 seeking approval to convert the land from park to commercial use. The Minister declined that request. But by then, portions of the land had already been sold to individuals, including the former Chief of Naval Staff, giving them the false impression that the land use would be changed,” Olayinka said.

He added, “The former Chief of Naval Staff was scammed. Instead of seeking help, he resorted to using military force, which led to the confrontation with the Minister.”

Olayinka condemned the actions of the Commanding Officer who denied Wike and FCTA officials access to the land, citing orders. He argued that not all orders from a superior are lawful or should be obeyed.

“I saw the military officer saying he was acting on orders. But which order? Orders must be lawful and reasonable. A military man cannot blindly obey an unlawful order. Yesterday, the Minister asked which order it was,” he said.

Olayinka also criticized the use of the former Chief of Naval Staff’s security detail, meant to protect him personally, in guarding the contested property. “He has security to protect himself but chose to send them to secure a construction site. That is not the purpose of their deployment,” he said.

He emphasized that the land was initially allocated for public use and recreation, not for private commercial development, underscoring that the conflict could have been avoided if the legal process had been followed.