John Azuka-Mbata’s emergence as the President-General (we love big titles!) of Ohanaeze, the Igbo apex socio-cultural organisation, has again ignited the controversy of whether or not the Ikwerres, of whom Azuka-Mbata is one, are Igbo. If Ikwerres are not Igbo, why elect a non-Igbo to lead an exclusively Igbo organization as important as Ohanaeze? And if Azuka-Mbata does not consider …

The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Barrister Nyesom Wike has ruled out a resolution of the rift with Rivers State Governor, Sir Siminalayi Fubara. Wike and Fubara, his successor as Rivers State governor, have been locked in a feud over control of the political structure of the state. On 18 December 2023, Fubara and Wike agreed to end …

The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Barrister Nyesom Wike has fired back at a former Rivers State Governor, Dr Peter Odili, saying that “an elder statesman should not be a trader and a sycophant all the time”. Wike, who is the immediate past Governor of the state, said that it was unfortunate that Odili, who is supposed to …

The Senior Special Adviser (SSA) to the FCT Minister on Public Communication and Social Media, Olarere Olayinka, has asked those alleging land grabbing by the FCT Administration, to show evidence of land ownership. The PUNCH earlier reported that a construction company, Paullosa Nigeria Limited, raised the alarm over a demolition notice issued by the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA) to …

The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has urged landowners within the territory to pay all outstanding ground rent or risk losing their properties. Wike made the appeal during the inauguration of the upgrading of War College/Army Checkpoint Road and other ancillary roads in Ushafa, Bwari Area Council, Abuja, on Monday. Describing ground rent as the “FCT’s …

“What have we done?” a beggar, Ali Bappa, has exclaimed in disbelief when newsmen informed him about the Federal Capital Territory Minister, Nyesom Wike’s directive to arrest beggars in the nation’s capital. Wike had during the flag-off ceremony for access road construction in the Katampe District on Tuesday threatened a crackdown on beggars. Lamenting the increasing population of beggars in …

The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Senator Heineken Lokpobiri has said that his counterpart in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Barrister Nyesom Wike is responsible for his appointment into President Bola Tinubu’s cabinet. At an event organised in honour of Wike by the Ijaw Peoples Congress in Port Harcourt, the Rivers state capital, on Saturday, Lokpobiri also revealed that …

The Elders Forum of the Peoples Democratic Party has apologised to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, for the ongoing rift between him and his successor, Siminalayi Fubara. The elders, led by the Executive Director of Finance at the Niger Delta Development Commission, Boma Iyaye, apologised to Wike on Saturday at the Rivers State Ijaw Peoples Congress …

Mr Nyesom Wike, Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), has attributed the rising cost of housing accommodation in FCT to market forces. Wike stated this in Abuja on Saturday when he visited Zeberced Limited Quarry, Kubwa-Abuja on Saturday, to see what the company was doing. While responding to questions from journalists on what the FCT Administration was doing to …

The Martin Amaewhule-led Rivers State House of Assembly has declared that the recently constituted Rivers State Investment Promotion Agency by Governor Siminalayi Fubara is illegal. The House, loyal to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, also stated that all appointments made by the governor related to the board were not recognised by law. At its 41st sitting, …