Wike clarifies remarks against Seun Okinbaloye, Atiku condemns violent rhetoric
By Omeiza Ajayi
The Federal Capital Territory FCT Administration has clarified comments made by its minister, Nyesom Wike, during Friday’s media chat, following a sharp rebuke from the Atiku Abubakar Media Office.
The controversy centres on remarks directed at broadcaster Seun Okinbaloye, which the minister’s office describes as figurative but which the opposition views as a “sinister” threat to the press.
Senior Special Assistant on Public Communications and Social Media to the minister, Lere Olayinka, stated on Saturday that the minister’s comments were strictly hyperbolic and intended to highlight professional grievances rather than physical intent.
“The minister never meant that he will shoot Seun Okinbaloye. They even spoke on phone today, and he understood what the minister meant,” Olayinka said.
He explained that the minister was primarily reacting to what he perceived as the anchor “descending into the political arena by speaking as an interested party, instead of an interviewer.”
The FCT Administration emphasised that the context of the live programme made the lack of intent clear to those present.
According to Olayinka, “The statement made by the minister was in hyperbolic context, which was clearly without intent. It was primarily using exaggeration to make a point.”
The statement noted that even during the broadcast, the minister explicitly clarified that “he didn’t mean that he will carry gun and shoot the television anchor,” an explanation that reportedly prompted laughter from the interviewing panel at the time.
It urged the public to “discountenance the use of the comment as instrument of blackmail and propaganda,” maintaining that the minister’s words are being intentionally misrepresented for political gain.
However, the Media Office of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has condemned the minister’s language, describing it as a “disgraceful and dangerous threat.”
The office argued that the rhetoric represents a “chilling signal” of increasing intolerance within the current administration.
“This was not a joke. It was not banter. It was a threat – clear, direct, and deeply sinister,” the Atiku Media Office stated, adding that “when those entrusted with authority begin to speak the language of violence against the press, democracy itself is under attack.”
The opposition office linked the incident to a broader pattern of governance, asserting that “Wike’s outburst is not an isolated slip. It is a symptom of a broader, more dangerous pattern… where dissent is criminalised, criticism is met with hostility, and intimidation has become the default language of governance.”
The Media Office further questioned the safety of ordinary citizens if a prominent journalist could be “threatened so brazenly on national television.”
Demanding accountability, the Atiku Media Office called for an “immediate and unconditional public apology from Nyesom Wike to Seun Okinbaloye and the entire Nigerian media community,” as well as a public repudiation of the rhetoric by the Tinubu administration.