Wike could say anything under the influence of alcohol and later debunk it, he is a very careless speaker.
Professor Benjamin Okaba, the President of the Ijaw Nation Congress, has referred to Nyesom Wike, the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, as a careless speaker who is capable of saying anything without hesitation while under the influence of alcohol.
This statement was made by Professor Okaba in reaction to Wike’s assertion that the Ijaws constitute a minority ethnic group in Nigeria.
The Professor of Sociology referred to Wike’s remark as a casual comment while he was appearing on the ‘The Morning Show’ on Arise Television on Wednesday, April 2, 2025.
“The person you’re talking about (Wike) could say anything under the influence of alcohol and later debunk it; he is a very careless speaker. These are basic demographics that are well-known. Ijaws are not the fourth largest; they are one of the four largest.
“Most times, we look at the land mass, the land mass in terms of space cannot exist outside a water space. So the boundaries of the Ijawland or may be Nigeria beyond land; it goes into the rivers. So from wherever that is a boundary of Nigeria, all that River spots belong to the Ijawland.
“We are not minorities, in fact, we are the most populous and most indigenous ethnic nationality in the Niger Delta, that’s a fact that is well known. Ijaws are in six states.”
The Ijaw people are indigenous to several villages in the states of Abia, Delta, Edo, Ondo, and Rivers, he noted, adding that Wike’s comment was an intentional distortion of fact. Bayelsa State is not the only state in which the Ijaw people are indigenous.
“They are in Abia. 26 communities in Abia State are indigenous Ijaw people. So we felt that was a deliberate distortion.
“In Delta State, we have more than four local government areas. Even in Rivers State, we have 10 and a half local government areas, and Ikwerre has three.
Forget about those who distorted political census figures. When the time comes for real counting, we shall know them. Ijaws are in Ondo State, they are in Edo State.”
As a result, Okaba issued a directive to President Bola Tinubu, urging him to refrain from allowing a single person to undermine his efforts to establish democracy in Nigeria. He stated that Wike is not an independent entity from the government.