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The Minister of Nigeria’s Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has stated that critics accuse him of land grabbing simply because he is a politician, as he defended his revocation of undeveloped plots for public projects.
Wike said this on Tuesday during the commissioning of Judges’ Quarters and the Court of Appeal and the flag-off of construction of quarters for the Industrial Court and Code of Conduct Tribunal Judges in Abuja, marking President Bola Tinubu’s third year in office.
The land on which the Judges’ Quarters were built had been allocated to construction giant Julius Berger 15 years ago but was left undeveloped, Wike said.
“This land belongs to Julius Berger,” Wike said.
“So I looked around: no road, nowhere to take land. So I went back to the office. I said when did you allocate this land to Julius Berger? He said, 15 years ago. I called Julius Berger and said, 15 years ago you have not developed the land. He said oh, they are waiting for infrastructure.’ I said okay, you are waiting for infrastructure.’ After taking our land, no problem. I revoked the land for public interest.”
He said his actions were aimed at development, not personal enrichment.
“So all over social media they say oh he is a land grabber. He has come to grab land. So you know I’m not on social media. So one day I came back home and my wife was asking me what’s all this? You’re grabbing land. I said look, I’m a politician. Do your own work. Let me do my own work. If you don’t want to be abused, don’t be a politician. In fact, the day you become a politician is the day they will write your history. Even those who don’t know you, they will write your history.”
“So I thank God we are here today. They can now see that I did not come to grab land; I only came to see where we can develop, providing infrastructure for the judicial officers,” Wike added.
The minister said he did not allow criticism to trouble him.
“I want to tell everybody that once you know what you are doing, don’t bother. I don’t listen to what people are saying. I have the cue. If you are like abusing me from morning to night, I just come back. I ask my wife, is there any good whisky? She says, yes, take my whisky; I go and sleep. While you are worrying yourself, I’m just sleeping very well, you know.”
“So when you see me, you say, why is it that you are not worried? I say, worried for what? What’s the problem? If I’m not important, nobody will call my name,” he said.
