A heated political row has erupted in Nigeria’s capital city, as the media aide to Senator Ireti Heebah Kingibe issued a scathing rebuttal to comments made by Lere Olayinka, spokesperson to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike.
In a blistering statement on Thursday, July 10, 2025, Kennedy Mbele, the Senior Special Assistant on Media to Senator Kingibe, described Olayinka’s remarks as “childish, irresponsible, and completely divorced from the real issues at stake.” The clash follows Senator Kingibe’s recent interview highlighting governance concerns in the FCT—a conversation that has since spiraled into personal mudslinging.
“It is only very dirty minds that can shamelessly accuse a 71-year-old mother and grandmother of immorality,” Mbele declared, responding to what he called an orchestrated smear campaign from Wike’s camp.
Mbele said Olayinka’s tirade was not only unprovoked but intentionally misleading, accusing him of weaponizing character attacks to distract from substantive policy questions raised by the Senator. He stressed that Senator Kingibe’s interview made no personal references to Wike, but rather focused on the administration of the territory.
“Lere jumped into a senior conversation and responded like a child,” Mbele said, adding that Olayinka’s response lacked depth and maturity. “Rather than defend his boss on the substance of the FCT’s challenges, he chose instead to descend into the gutters.”
One of the key flashpoints in Olayinka’s outburst was an unsubstantiated claim that staff in the Senator’s office resigned due to unpaid salaries. Mbele firmly dismissed this as fiction, clarifying that all disengaged aides were not only paid but received palliatives at the point of their exit.
“No aide resigned due to unpaid salaries. That’s a desperate lie meant to score cheap points,” he said.
As tensions mount, Mbele cautioned against efforts to deflect public attention from real governance issues, urging Abuja residents to stay focused on policies affecting their welfare rather than being drawn into media theatrics.
“If this is what Lere was hired to do, then we truly feel sorry for him—because he is bound to fail,” the statement concluded.
The war of words signals deepening political fault lines within the FCT, as elected officials and appointees clash over competing visions for leadership, accountability, and the direction of the capital city.
