Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has urged Nigerians to reject politicians who rely on deceit and political stunts to secure public office.
Wike made the call at the inaugural Idoma Hall of Fame Induction, organised in collaboration with Ochetoha K’Idoma as part of the Idoma Centenary Plus celebration in Abuja on Thursday.
Delivering the keynote address, titled “People, Politics and Power Play in Nigeria: The Agitation for Equity and Fairness”, Wike urged citizens to prioritise competence, accountability and track records over ethnic loyalty and political entitlement.
He said Nigeria’s quest for fairness would remain unresolved if politicians focused on which ethnic group or region controlled power without addressing how it was exercised.
“If one group replaces another at the table while the benefits remain fundamentally exclusionary, the occupants have changed, but the injustice has not.
“If we complain about marginalisation only when our own people are excluded, but become silent when others are marginalised after our people gain power, we are not opposing injustice; we are seeking access to its privileges,” he said.
He warned against using public office to accumulate personal wealth or promote sectional dominance, urging Nigerians to reject politicians who exploit grievances over marginalisation for personal gain.
While supporting constitutional provisions such as the federal character principle, Wike said equitable representation must not come at the expense of competence.
He said the principle, enshrined in the 1999 Constitution, as amended, was designed to promote national unity and prevent a few states or groups from dominating public institutions.
Wike said political inclusion should be measured by tangible governance outcomes, including jobs, quality education, healthcare, infrastructure, electricity, security and economic opportunities, rather than the ethnic backgrounds of public officeholders.
“A Nigerian should not be excluded from public office because of where he or she comes from; neither should competence become irrelevant once a candidate’s identity satisfies a representational expectation,” he said.
He added that Nigeria’s diversity should be a source of strength rather than a basis for exclusion.
The minister noted that the country had adopted mechanisms to accommodate its diversity, including federalism, state creation, revenue allocation, zoning and rotational presidency.
He, however, said these arrangements alone could not guarantee fairness, calling for a political system that prioritised the common good and gave every Nigerian a reasonable opportunity to participate in national life, irrespective of background.
