Mr Lere Olayinka, the Senior Special Assistant on Publicity and Communications to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has defended the minister’s actions during Tuesday’s confrontation with a naval officer in Abuja.

He described the incident as the outcome of a land scam that misled a former naval chief.

Speaking on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily programme on Wednesday, Olayinka said the disputed plot of land in question was originally allocated in 2007 for park and recreation purposes, not for residential or commercial development.

“That particular land was allocated to a company in 2007, Santos Estate Limited, for park and recreation.

“The company did not do anything on the land because that place is a parkway, it’s a walkway, it’s a road corridor. You don’t build there,” Olayinka said.

He explained that in 2022, the company applied to the FCT Administration for a change of land use from park to commercial, but the request was declined.

“In 2022, the minister of FCT declined that request. Wike was not the minister then,” he noted.

According to Olayinka, despite the rejection, the company illegally partitioned the land and sold portions to private individuals, including a former Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Awwal Gambo (retd).

“Probably in anticipation of the minister’s approval for conversion, the man decided to partition the land, a land allocated to him for park and recreation.

“He now partitioned the land and sold it to people, including the former Chief of Naval Staff,” he explained.

The aide, however, faulted the retired naval officer’s response, alleging that he attempted to use military influence to assert ownership over the land.

“That is why I want to say that the Chief of Naval Staff was scammed. He has realised that he was scammed. Instead of him to now come out and seek help, he resorted to use military might.

“After selling land allocated to you for park and recreation, for people to build a house, who should the Chief of Naval Staff go and hold? The person who’s claiming or the government?

“He chose not to hold the person who’s scammed, the company who’s scammed,” he added.