"You Don't Control FCT": Battle Line Drawn as Kingibe Dares Wike to Test Capacity During LG Election
- Senator Ireti Kingibe said the upcoming FCT area council elections will reveal Minister Wike’s actual control over the territory, noting widespread dissatisfaction with his leadership
- Kingibe criticised Wike for neglecting security and infrastructure, highlighting her own efforts to install solar lights in dark, unsafe areas of Abuja where the minister has failed to act
- Confident about her political future, Kingibe dismissed Wike’s claim she won’t return to the Senate in 2027 and said FCT residents are united in their growing resentment toward the minister’s governance
Senator Ireti Kingibe, representing the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), has declared that the upcoming area council elections will be a test of Minister Nyesom Wike’s grip on the territory.
Speaking on Channels Television’s Political Paradigm, Kingibe said many Abuja residents are unhappy with Wike’s leadership style and disconnected from his governance.
Source: Twitter
“Local government elections are coming early next year. That is when the people of the FCT show ministers, ‘we like you or we do not like you,’” she said.
The senator added:
“The local government election is going to tell whether Wike controls FCT, because nobody does.”
Kingibe accuses Wike of neglecting security, infrastructure needs
Kingibe criticised the minister for being out of touch with the urgent needs of FCT residents, especially concerning security and basic infrastructure, Daily Trust reported.
She cited the darkness in many parts of Abuja as a major safety concern.
“Most of Abuja is pitch dark. So I go there, put solar lights in between the places, and light up the place so that young people will at least be safer. They come give me awards, commend me for looking out for them. It’s not that he wouldn’t have done it too, except he doesn’t know what they need,” she explained.
She added that communities regularly contact her with security worries, which she addresses by installing solar lights in vulnerable public areas.
"A few lights will make a difference.’ I put it. Solar lights are cheap, but how many can I put? For where I can put one, the minister can put a thousand. Do you see the difference?" she said.
Kingibe confident about her political future amid Wike’s claims
Responding to Wike’s recent statement that she will not return to the Senate in 2027, Kingibe dismissed the claim, saying she is not desperate for reelection but confident in her political strength, Vanguard reported.
“You know, I was not interested in running, you want to bet? I know for certain that when I decide to run, it’s a shoo-in,” she said.
Kingibe: FCT residents united in discontent with Wike’s administration
Source: Twitter
Kingibe further described the FCT populace as independent-minded and increasingly frustrated with Wike’s governance approach.
“It’s only people who have lived here for a long time who know that the people of the FCT have their independent mind.
"You walk on the streets, and you will know that the one thing that unites us all in the FCT is our resentment of the minister. It’s not just about development. It’s about treating us with levity, treating us with disregard and contempt,” she concluded.
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Wike speaks on Tinubu ICC
Legit.ng earlier reported that the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, said the newly rehabilitated Bola Ahmed Tinubu International Conference Centre, Abuja, has generated more than N700 million in three weeks.
Wike disclosed that the person who was managing the centre before the rehabilitation was remitting only N50 million to the FCT Administration annually.
Source: Legit.ng
