By Jude Opara
The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has taken a swipe at activist-turned-politician Aisha Yesufu, following her failure to secure the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) senatorial ticket for the Federal Capital Territory ahead of the 2027 elections.
Wike made the remarks during a luncheon organized for candidates of the Rainbow Coalition in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, where he questioned Yesufu’s electoral appeal despite her outspoken criticism of political office holders.
The former Rivers State governor suggested that public commentary and activism alone do not translate into electoral success, pointing to Yesufu’s inability to emerge as the NDC candidate in the FCT.
Referring to her frequent public interventions on national issues, Wike said the activist was known for making strong arguments in the media but failed when subjected to the test of party politics.
According to him, Yesufu could not win what he described as an “ordinary” NDC primary election, stressing that the contest was neither within the ruling party nor one of the country’s larger opposition parties.
“There’s one woman who said Wike is an appointee of government and that she has no business with appointees. You speak grammar, speak grammar,” Wike said.
He added: “Ordinary primary of NDC, not APC or PDP, just ordinary NDC, what happened? She didn’t make it.”
The minister further argued that many commentators often make sweeping claims on television and social media but struggle when confronted with the realities of electoral politics.
“It’s easy for people to talk. When they enter into those media houses, they begin to churn out data from nowhere,” he stated.
Continuing his criticism, Wike said the period for political testing had arrived and the outcome of the primary election had exposed the gap between rhetoric and grassroots support.
“Now, the time for data has come. What happened? ‘Fa fa fa foul.’ It didn’t work. If e didn’t dey? E didn’t dey,” he added.
The comments are the latest chapter in the ongoing exchanges between Wike and Yesufu, who has been a vocal critic of several government policies and political figures in recent years.
Yesufu has yet to publicly respond to the minister’s latest remarks.
