Nyesom Wike, the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), has denied allegations that he allocated over 2000 hectares of Abuja’s prime land, valued at $3.6 billion, to his son, Joaquin Wike.
In a statement released on Thursday, Lere Olayinka, the Minister’s media aide, described the report, originally published by Peoples Gazette, as a blackmail against his principal.
The Peoples Gazette had in an exclusive report alleged that Wike, since assuming office in August 2023, had signed off 2,082 hectares of some of Abuja’s most valuable land, including in Maitama, Asokoro, Gaduwa, Guzape, and Bwari, to a company linked to his son, JOAQ Farms and Estates Ltd.
The report said Wike bypassed key civil service regulations, issued certificates of occupancy personally, and circumvented required payments including ground rent and survey fees.
One senior aide of the Minister reportedly told the newspaper: “When we told the minister in April that he needed to slow down on frequent allocations to his own children, he said he was just starting because his goal was to make them the largest landowners in Abuja.”
But in his response, Olayinka said: “Even though it is the right of the Minister and members of his family, both immediate and extended, to own lands anywhere in Nigeria, including the FCT, provided all necessary conditions are met, no land has been allocated to any of his children.”
The Peoples Gazette report had detailed how Wike, through Joaq Farms and Estates Ltd, a company registered on October 10, 2024, allegedly tied to his son, secured massive land allocations starting just days after incorporation.
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