A Senior Advocate of Nigeria and constitutional law expert, Prof. Sebastine Hon, has criticized the actions of Naval Officer A.M. Yerima during his clash with the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike. He described the officer’s behavior as a violation of the law.
In a Facebook post on Wednesday, Hon said Yerima had no right to stop Wike from entering a disputed piece of land in Abuja. He explained that such behavior cannot be defended as “following orders.”
According to him, although military officers must obey their superiors, there are limits to such obedience, as recognised by the Supreme Court of Nigeria. He cited two court cases — Onunze v. State (2023) and Nigeria Air Force v. James (2002) — which make it clear that soldiers are not required to obey illegal or unjust orders.
Hon added that no military rule allows an officer to guard a private construction site for a superior officer, especially in questionable situations. If there were genuine security concerns, he said, the proper authority to contact would have been the police, not the military.
The professor also reminded Nigerians that the FCT Minister has the same powers over Abuja lands as the President, under Sections 297(2) and 302 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended).
He explained:
“By law, the President has handed all powers related to land administration in Abuja to the Minister. So, in legal terms, Wike was acting on behalf of the President on that day.”
Hon argued that even if Yerima’s superior officer were still in service, he had no authority to stop Wike, who was representing the President. He called the officer’s action a challenge to civil authority.
While admitting that Wike’s approach might have been forceful, Hon said the Minister’s actions were completely legal, while the officer’s were unlawful. He pointed out that Section 114 of the Armed Forces Act makes soldiers responsible for civilian offences, meaning Yerima could be charged before a Court Martial for blocking a public officer from doing his duty.
Hon warned against celebrating the officer’s behavior, saying it could encourage other military personnel to disrespect civilian authorities.
“If such acts go unpunished, soldiers might feel free to intimidate civilians and even boast that they did it to a minister and got away with it,” he said.
The comments came after a heated confrontation between Wike and Yerima at a disputed plot — Plot 1946, Gaduwa District, Abuja.
Officials from the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA), working under Wike’s orders, had gone to the site to enforce a stop-work and demolition order because the developers lacked valid land documents.
A video of the incident, widely shared on social media, shows the Minister and his team being stopped by armed personnel, leading to a tense exchange of words.
Wike accused the soldiers and developers of land grabbing and vowed not to be intimidated. Speaking to journalists afterward, he said he would not yield to blackmail or threats“
“I was told the military came earlier to chase my officials away, so I decided to go there myself. It’s unfortunate that a senior officer could behave that way. If there’s a problem, he should come to my office, not try to use his uniform to intimidate people. I won’t give in to intimidation,” Wike said.
