The Director of the Abuja School of Social and Political Thought, Dr. Sam Amadi, has said that the confrontation between the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, and a naval personnel over a disputed Abuja, property was avoidable, stressing that the minister ?should not have gone there physically.?

Speaking in an interview with ARISE News on Wednesday, Amadi explained that while the FCT Minister has the lawful power to revoke land allocations, enforcing such decisions must follow due process, typically through the police?not the military or personal intervention.

?The Minister has the legal right, if rightly authorised by the President, to revoke or cancel land allocations in accordance with due process,? he said. ?But he is not the executor. He authorises, and then the police should enforce. It was needless for the Minister to go there physically with people to get the officers out.?

Amadi said the Defence Minister?s assurance that officers on lawful assignments would be protected was correct, as soldiers acting within their authorised duties deserved protection.

?Officers on lawful assignments need protection because they act for the Commander-in-Chief,? he explained. ?The Minister of Defence was right to say that. But we must understand the distinction of powers?while the FCT Minister exercises delegated presidential authority over the territory, the Commander-in-Chief?s powers over the military are not delegable.?

He stressed that although Wike was acting on delegated presidential powers as FCT Minister, those powers did not extend to commanding military personnel.

?The Minister exercises the President?s executive powers under the FCT Act, but not the Commander-in-Chief?s powers,? he said. ?Even the Minister of Defence does not exercise those powers directly. So, although the Minister may have had the right to revoke the allocation, he should not have physically confronted the officers.?

Amadi noted that from all indications, the naval officer at the scene appeared to have acted within his instructions.

?In my view, the soldier did not do anything wrong. He was authorised to secure the place and prevent access. As long as the instruction appeared lawful, he had to obey. Protecting a site is not, on the face of it, illegal,? he said.

However, he said the episode highlighted deeper governance issues?particularly the abuse of land administration powers under the Land Use Act by both ministers and governors.

?When we enacted the Land Use Act, we never thought ministers and governors would abuse it this way. They have become untrustworthy trustees of the common good,? he argued. ?You can?t take land from one citizen and give it to another under the guise of public purpose. That is not public good?it?s racketeering and high-level criminality over land resources.?

Amadi called for an urgent review of the Land Use Act, saying that both the federal and state governments had shown repeated misuse of land revocation powers.

?The time has come to junk the Land Use Act. Ministers and governors have proved to be untrustworthy. We need clear, transparent procedures like in the U.S. law of takings?where there?s due process and a demonstrable public interest,? he said.

He further criticised the involvement of a retired naval general in the land dispute, describing it as another example of the misuse of both civilian and military influence.

?The retired general clearly took advantage of his connections with the defence establishment. This is a misuse of power on both sides. Government officials must learn to process actions properly,? Amadi said. ?You make an order, you cancel it, and if it?s resisted, you trigger enforcement through the Inspector General of Police?not by showing up personally.?

Concluding, Dr Amadi said the clash underscored a broader problem of weak governance processes and disregard for civility in Nigeria?s public administration.

?This whole incident speaks to a lack of due process and civility in governance,? he said. ?If the matter is already in court, then all parties should allow the legal process to take its course. (AriseNews TV, excluding headline)

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