By Yusuf Danjuma Yunusa

Yesterday afternoon, at about 3pm, a Naval officer with the name A. M Yerima was involved in a face-off with the serving minister of the federal capital territory, Nyesome Wike, over land issue.

The altercation led to Wike addressing the officer as a ‘fool’ severally despite Yerima being polite in his responses. With all the verbal abuses to the officer of the law from the minister, the viral video showed that the Yerima stood his ground and refused to allow Wike assess the land; while letting him know that he was acting based on an order from his superior.

With a roudy scene as shown in the video, Wike later put a call directly to the Chief of Defense Staff, Oluyede Olufemi, who, according to the video, was believed to had made him leave the scene.

What is Really The Story Behind The Altercation?

According to a video made by a practicing human rights lawyer, Deji Adeyanju, the said piece of land located at Gaduwa, in Abuja, belongs to a Chief Naval Officer. He acquired the land for his wife and started developing on it already when Wike’s men came threatening the builders to leave or they would be dealt with mercilessly. The development was reported to the Chief Naval Officer, and he ordered his boys to go to the location and make sure they were not harmed in any form.

Wike’s men having known that military officers had arrived, positioning themselves strategically on the piece of land, went to inform their superior who came and started verbal abuses.

Who Is Wrong?

With that exchange between the young, polite, and vibrant officer Yerima and Wike, some people are of the opinion that the officer was wrong to have come to the scene, as it’s not right for a military personnel to meddle in civilian cases like land dispute; citing the Land Acts section of law that prohibits such.

Conversely, others insist the officer wasn’t wrong, that it’s Wike–for addressing an officer of the law as a fool; noting that the said piece of land belongs to a 3–star General who acquired it for his wife. They further argued that Wike should have immediately reach out to the said 3–star General to find out the legality of his acquisition of the land instead of involving himself in an exchange with the officer to the extent he had to abuse in order to make a point.

What Does The Law Say?

According to another practicing lawyer, Osita Chidoka–the founder of Athena Centre For Policy And Leadership, he made two points known in his piece which he entitled: “Minister Wike: Power, Process, And The Rule of Law”:

One of the points was that the FCT Minister was wrong to have abused the officer verbally:

“Any law enforcement officer, in uniform or plain clothes, represents the President and the sovereignty of the Nigerian state. To abuse such an officer is to diminish the authority of the Republic itself,” he posted.

The second point was the process that Wike took the matter through. Osita explained that he would have taken the matter through the appropriate channels instead of trying to enforce an order himself while making verbal abuses.

“Executive authority must be exercised or adjudicated through the courts, ministries, and lawful instruments of state, never through confrontation. No matter how justified a grievance, a minister cannot become an enforcer; that violates the very idea of ordered government.

In a democracy, ministers act through process, not presence. A formal communication to the Minister of Defence, whose office oversees the Armed Forces, would have sufficed. If the officers were on illegal duty, the established disciplinary systems would have addressed it.”

Chidoka concluded by noting that the FCT Minister has dent the image of the office he holds by his uncouth behavior at the site:

“This episode is a cautionary tale: This episode demeans the dignity of the office of the Minister and undermines the image of disciplined governance.”

However, section 5 of the Land Use Act gives the Governor, or the FCT Minister in Abuja, wide powers to manage all land within their jurisdiction. In simple terms, this means the Governor can legally grant anyone the right to occupy and use land for any purpose—whether for housing, business, farming, or public use. The Governor can also authorise someone to use part of another person’s land for specific purposes, charge rent for land that has been allocated, and review or change that rent from time to time, as stated in the land documents or whenever necessary.

But that does not warrant him insulting an officer who, by extension, represents the president of the federal republic of Nigeria as the C-in-C of the armed forces.

Another lawyer, Muhammad Bello Buhari, stated that the laws vested on the FCT Minister, authorizing him to wield certain powers do not exonerate him from the uncouth behavior that he exhibited at the Gaduwa land scene.

“From the reports that have emerged, the land in question was acquired by the 23rd CNS, Vice Admiral AZ Gambo (Rtd), duly documented, and lawfully owned. Yet, under the present administration, it was suddenly revoked without justification, without notice, without compensation, and the minister personally led a team of police and bulldozers to enforce that revocation. How can a revocation of title be valid when it violates the due process prescribed by the same Land Use Act that confers power on the minister? Even under that law, revocation must be founded on overriding public interest, not personal vendetta or political motivation. And where revocation is done, the law requires notice and compensation. When none of these exist, what we have is not law, it is brute power,” Mr. Bello posted.

He continued, “Let us even assume, for argument’s sake, that the land was properly revoked. Should that justify the minister’s physical presence, berating and demeaning a presidential commissioned military officer on lawful duty, acting under the orders of a three-star general? The same law that vests authority in the minister also imposes boundaries on how that authority should be exercised. Power must always be subject to restraint, and leadership without discipline is the most dangerous form of lawlessness.”

Reacting to the development, the former Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenaant General Tukur Buratai(rtd), posted on his social media handle that Wike’s action undermines the security consciousness of the country:

“The events of November 11, 2025, involving the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Barrister Nyesom Wike, demand an immediate and serious response. His public disparagement of a uniformed officer of the Nigerian Armed Forces transcends mere misconduct; it represents a palpable threat to national security and institutional integrity,” he posted.
General Buratai concluded by urging the FCT Minister to tender an apology for the verbal abuses toward the officer:

“Consequently, Barrister Nyesom Wike must tender an immediate and unequivocal public apology to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu as Commander-in-Chief, the entire Armed Forces of Nigeria, and the specific officer whose honour was violated.

Our nation’s security must come first. It is time for decisive action, not politics of military bashing. The integrity of our Armed Forces demands nothing less.”