You’ll remain social media president, Wike replies Obi over FCT school comment

Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister, Barr. Nyesom Wike, has accused Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate, Peter Obi, of “playing politics with everything,” saying the former Anambra State governor would remain “a social media president, not the president of Nigeria.”

The Minister made the remarks on Thursday while inaugurating newly constructed roads ILS 11 (Esther Bali Street) and MAR 24 (Kez Udezue Street) in Mabushi District, Abuja.

It would be recalled that Obi, during a visit to LEA Primary School in Kuje, Abuja, had criticised the FCT Administration over what he described as the appalling condition of public schools in the territory, calling it “a national disgrace” that exposes the government’s lack of commitment to education.

Reacting, Wike challenged Obi to publicly compare his eight-year record as Anambra governor with what has been achieved in the FCT in less than two years under his leadership.

He disclosed that the initiative for the newly inaugurated road came from “a responsible citizen” who reached out to the FCTA, not through social media.

He said: “The road we are commissioning today was brought to our attention by a responsible citizen, and I’m happy that person is here today.

“There is one social media man who calls himself a presidential candidate. He went to one school in the FCT and said we did not provide toilets for them — imagine! He plays politics with everything.

“When he was governor for eight years, did he develop the entire Anambra? Instead, he carried the state’s money and put it in his bank. His name is Peter Obi. That is why his successors have been struggling.

“I challenge him to come out publicly and compare what he did for eight years in Anambra with what we have done in the FCT in just two years.

“Someone who cannot manage a political party as a presidential candidate is talking about managing a complex country like Nigeria. He will remain a social media president.”

Earlier, in a statement issued to newsmen by Lere Olayinka, Senior Special Assistant to the FCT Minister, it was stated that the FCT Administration under Wike had achieved “real and verifiable development.”

According to the statement, “Seventy-three schools are presently being renovated across the six Area Councils in the FCT, while twenty-one have been completely renovated.

“A total of 102 contracts have been awarded for the renovation of schools in the FCT, and as of today, 21 schools have been completed, with work ongoing on others.”

Describing Obi as an “Internally Displaced Politician (IDP)” seeking relevance in the media space, Olayinka said: “It is funny that someone who should be bothered that he does not have a platform to contest the 2027 election has turned himself into a political wanderer.”

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