Senator Ireti Kingibe has set a condition for collaborating with FCT Minister Nyesom Wike: he must apologize for his disparaging remarks about her legislative activities.
This comes after Wike threatened to unseat Kingibe in 2027, following her criticism of his handling of issues in the FCT, including the poor state of schools and hospitals.
Wike had retorted, questioning Kingibe’s achievements as Senator and sarcastically suggesting she could “hang on a transformer” if dissatisfied with his performance.
You, as a legislator, what have you done? How many bills have you sponsored for us to improve our education and health sector? I challenge that legislator. If you are very popular, in 2027 come and run under Abuja, we will fail you.
“The Minister of State, Dr Mariya Mahmoud, and I have not been in office for more than 11 months and the person is angry that people are praising us. If you don’t want, or you are angry about that, go and hang yourself in a transformer”, he said.
In a recent interview on Channels Television’s Political Paradigm, Senator Ireti Kingibe stated that she is willing to put aside her differences with FCT Minister Nyesom Wike and work with him, but only if he apologizes for his previous derogatory comments. She emphasized that, as his senior, he should have shown more respect in his address, and an apology is necessary for her to consider collaboration.
“I’m actually willing to do everything to work with the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, as long as he apologises first for saying I should go and hang on a transformer.
“Once he does that, it is all over. We can start afresh but until then, everybody stays in your lane. With all due respect, I am so much older than him. Even courtesy demands he should not speak to me like that.
“He doesn’t understand the concept of the FCT. If he did, it is nothing personal. He says ‘I don’t want to be her friend.’ How does governance translate into friendship?” she added.
