Nyesom Wike, the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, firmly rejected any attempt by Senator Ireti Kingibe to force a friendship upon him. ‘
He criticized the senator for resorting to blackmail rather than addressing issues through appropriate channels or fulfilling her oversight duties effectively.
In an interview with reporters in Abuja, the former Governor of Rivers State emphasized that Senator Kingibe’s grievances stem from being overlooked for the Senate Committee on FCT chairmanship, a position she coveted after being snubbed by the Senate President.
“I don’t want to be personal…she’s the Senator for FCT. She went around saying, ‘oh, oh Wike is busy scraping roads…I should leave the roads till when the potholes come?” Wike said.
“Somebody wants to be your friend and you say ‘I don’t want to be your friend. Is it by force?’ The problem is that she wanted to be Chairman, the Senate Committee on FCT, and the Senate President said ‘I’m not giving you’.
‘What are you going to supervise me? You cannot supervise me. What is her interest, that I must see her? If I have a problem I’ll go and see her. I don’t have a problem. Nobody can intimidate me. Look, I was a Minister before. I became a governor of one of the most important states in Nigeria and she thinks that the only way you can bring me is to go to Channel, TVC, saying the Minister is not carrying me along.
“I don’t have the back to carry. It’s not about blackmailing. Do the right thing. You know her problem? She ran election with my friend Philip Aduda and she sees me taking Philip everywhere instead of her being the Senator. Should I abandon my friend because she failed election?” Wike queried.