By Our Correspondent
ABUJA — Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has disclosed how security agencies uncovered what he described as a fabricated $2 million bribery allegation involving his son, insisting that investigators relied on travel records to expose what he called a calculated attempt to blackmail his family and tarnish his reputation.
Speaking during a media briefing in Abuja, Wike said the allegation collapsed after investigators established that his son had departed Nigeria on a British Airways flight on the morning of the day the alleged cash exchange was claimed to have taken place later that night.
The minister said the findings by security agencies completely contradicted the allegations, which had suggested that his son personally received $2 million in a clandestine transaction.
According to Wike, information about the allegation first reached him through a contact at the Presidential Villa, prompting him to alert security agencies to investigate the claim.
He explained that investigators subsequently obtained the travel manifest and other relevant records from British Airways, which confirmed that his son was no longer in Nigeria at the time the alleged meeting and exchange of money purportedly occurred.
"The facts were clear," Wike said, stressing that documentary evidence exposed the allegation as entirely false.
The FCT minister also revealed that some individuals allegedly approached him with suggestions that he should quietly resolve the matter rather than pursue a full investigation.
He said he rejected the proposal outright, insisting that yielding to such pressure would have encouraged blackmail and misinformation.
"I refused because it was nothing but cheap blackmail," Wike said, adding that anyone making criminal allegations against public officials should be prepared to substantiate them with credible evidence.
The minister cited the incident while defending the Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, who has recently come under public scrutiny over allegations reportedly made by an associate of businesswoman Aisha Achimugu, identified as Adeyemi.
Wike argued that politically exposed persons and senior government officials frequently become targets of false accusations designed to embarrass them and undermine the administration.
He maintained that allegations of corruption or misconduct should be formally reported to the appropriate law enforcement and anti-corruption agencies rather than prosecuted through the media.
According to him, the proper institutions possess the capacity to investigate allegations objectively and determine their authenticity based on evidence.
"The right thing is to report such matters to the relevant security agencies. They will investigate and establish the truth. Resorting to media campaigns without evidence only damages reputations and undermines public confidence," he said.
Meanwhile, the Presidency has directed the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) to investigate allegations relating to the Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC).
The directive is expected to enable the anti-corruption agency to determine the veracity of the claims and establish whether any laws were violated.
The latest development comes amid renewed public attention on allegations involving senior government officials, with authorities reiterating that due process and evidence-based investigations remain the appropriate means of resolving such matters.
Wike insisted that while no public official should be shielded from investigation where credible allegations exist, false accusations intended to damage reputations must also be thoroughly exposed and those responsible held accountable.
