Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has responded to criticism over his Tuesday visit to the All Progressives Congress (APC) national chairman, Prof. Nentawe Yilwatda, declaring that he does not practice “politics of enmity” and owes no one a public account of his private associations.
Speaking to journalists during a project inspection on Wednesday, Wike said his visit was not a political meeting but a personal and respectful interaction between acquaintances.
He was inspecting ongoing road projects in Karu, Apo-Karshi, and Kubwa, where he stressed the need for timely completion of the works.
“We were all colleagues before he left for the chairmanship of APC. So, what I should do anytime I see him is to hide? Anytime he sees me, he should run away so people will not say something?” he queried.
The minister revealed that the visit was in fact a reciprocal one, noting that Yilwatda had made several unsuccessful attempts to see him at his office.
Responding to questions about why no formal briefing followed the meeting, Wike was unapologetic.
He maintained he was under no obligation to disclose the details of his private life or social interactions to the public, dismissing the notion that politicians belonging to different parties must keep their distance from one another.
The minister, who remains a member of the Peoples Democratic Party PDP despite serving in President Bola Tinubu’s cabinet, argued that freedom of association transcends party lines and that reading political conspiracy into ordinary human interaction was misguided.
His primary concern, he said, was the satisfaction of his “appointor” and the delivery of visible results for residents of the FCT — not managing public perception or second-guessing what, as he put it, “somebody on the road is thinking.”
“What’s important to me is what I’m doing for my people,” Wike said, insisting that the quality of his work carries far more weight than political speculation.
