Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Nyesom Wike has cautioned former Anambra State Governor Peter Obi over his recent criticism of the state of public schools in the FCT.
In a statement released on Thursday, October 16, by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication and Social Media, Lere Olayinka, Wike advised Obi to focus on rebuilding his political career instead of “seeking media attention by turning himself into a critic of everything, including the most ridiculous.”
Obi, during a visit to LEA Primary School in Kapwa, Abuja, had described the condition of public schools in the FCT as “a national disgrace” and an example of Nigeria’s “hollow commitment to education.”
Responding, Olayinka said the FCT Administration under Wike was focused on “real and verifiable development,” not what he called the “Mad Man Advice Induced Beer Parlour Development” that allegedly characterised Obi’s eight years as Anambra governor.
“In the FCT, real and verifiable development is taking place. Seventy-three schools are presently being renovated across the six Area Councils, while twenty-one have been completely renovated,” he stated.
While acknowledging that some schools in the FCT still require government attention, Olayinka insisted that Wike’s administration has made significant progress. “Unlike Obi, who did nothing to uplift the education sector as Governor of Anambra State, the Wike-led FCTA has been building and renovating schools. A total of 102 contracts have been awarded for school renovations, and as of today, twenty-one have been completed while work continues on others,” he said.
He challenged Obi to disclose how many schools he built during his tenure, arguing that if the former governor had truly delivered the level of transformation he often claims, “Anambra State would have become a reference point in development.”
“As Governor of Anambra State for eight years, he chose to keep the state’s money in his own bank instead of using it to build schools, roads, hospitals, and other infrastructure. Today, Anambra is still suffering from the effects of his eight years of misgovernance, with his successors trying to fix the rot he left behind,” Olayinka alleged.
He further dismissed Obi as an “Internally Displaced Politician (IDP)” searching for relevance. “It is funny that someone who should be worried that he doesn’t even have a platform for the 2027 election has turned himself into a political wanderer,” he said.
Olayinka also questioned Obi’s political future, asking: “Under which party is Mr. One Shoe contesting the 2027 presidential election? Will any party still give him a presidential ticket simply because he can lie about having one shoe and one wristwatch, as the Labour Party did in 2023?”
