The Senior Special Assistant on Publicity and Communications to the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, Mr. Lere Olayinka, has defended the Minister’s actions during a confrontation with a naval officer this week, revealing the incident was the culmination of a land scam that ensnared a former naval chief.
Speaking on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily program on Wednesday, Olayinka clarified that the disputed plot of land in Abuja was originally designated for park and recreation purposes in 2007, not for private residential or commercial use.
Olayinka explained that the land was initially allocated to a company, Santos Estate Limited, with strict limitations on its use.
“That particular land was allocated to a company in 2007, Santos Estate Limited, for park and recreation,” Olayinka stated. “The company did not do anything on the land because that place is a parkway, it’s a walkway, it’s a road corridor. You don’t build there.”
He further disclosed that in 2022, the company’s application to the FCT Administration to change the land use from park to commercial was declined, even before Minister Wike took office. “In 2022, the minister of FCT declined that request. Wike was not the minister then,” he noted.
“Probably in anticipation of the minister’s approval for conversion, the man decided to partition the land, a land allocated to him for park and recreation,” Olayinka explained. “He now partitioned the land and sold it to people, including the former Chief of Naval Staff.”
The FCT Minister’s aide strongly faulted the retired naval officer’s subsequent reaction, alleging that he attempted to use military influence to assert ownership over the illegal plot.
“That is why I want to say that the Chief of Naval Staff was scammed. He has realised that he was scammed. Instead of him to now come out and seek help, he resorted to use military might,” Olayinka asserted.
He questioned why the retired Vice Admiral targeted the government rather than the party that sold him the illegal land: “After selling land allocated to you for park and recreation, for people to build a house, who should the Chief of Naval Staff go and hold? The person who’s claiming or the government? He chose not to hold the person who’s scammed, the company who’s scammed.”
Olayinka further clarified that the land falls within the Mabushi area, which is designated for public and corporate buildings, not private residences.
He insisted that Vice Admiral Gambo currently holds no valid title or approved building plan for the property.
“Again, that particular portion has now been designated for the purpose of, you know, if you know Abuja very well, you know how Mabushi is,” Olayinka said. “That is where you have Ministry of Works environment. That portion of the land, that pathway is for public buildings and corporate buildings, not residential, meaning that you cannot build residential house there.”
He added firmly: “As of today, Vice Admiral Gambo does not have a document, a title document, showing that he owns the land. He does not own the land.”
The aide challenged the retired officer on development process, asking: “Assuming we’re not conceding that he has title documents and he owns the land, before you begin development of a land, there are processes you must pass through… The question Nigerians should ask Vice Admiral Gambo is, did he take his building plan on that land to development control? And did development control approve the building plan?”
Olayinka’s comments follow widespread public debate sparked by a viral video showing Minister Wike’s confrontation with naval personnel guarding the disputed property on Tuesday. The incident has raised significant questions regarding land administration, civil-military relations, and the use of power in the FCT.
