Nyesom Wike, the minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), has denied claims that he has shown sympathy for Israel in its fight with Palestine.
Days before to the Hamas attack on Israel and the ensuing and ongoing Jewish nation’s reprisal, the Israeli ambassador to Nigeria, Michael Freeman, paid the FCT minister a visit on Tuesday, October 3, according to Anaedoonline.ng.
Nevertheless, despite the time that had passed between the visit and the group’s battle with Israel, others had charged Wike with endorsing Israel on behalf of Nigeria.
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At a meeting with the Etsu Nupe, Abubakar Yahaya, of the Abuja National Mosque Management Board, Wike asserted that he lacked the constitutional authority to decide how Nigeria should conduct diplomatic ties with other countries, as such powers lie absolutely with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
The minister went on to say that the sole purpose of his meeting with the Israeli ambassador was to discuss a relationship in agriculture that would benefit farmers in the FCT.
He said, “I have heard from various social media platforms that we had a meeting, that we are doing this and that with Israel. I am here acting on the delegation of powers on behalf of Mr. President.
“I cannot determine a relationship between a country and another country. So, it is difficult for anybody to say I am doing this, I am doing that.
“Any foreign body that wants to have anything to do with Nigeria, it is the Minister of Foreign Affairs who will write to me and state that these people want to see me; it is simple. And when they come, it is in my position to say look, we want to partner with you. Take, for instance, you are going into agriculture, and we want to partner, then we tell you where exactly.
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“In Abuja here, most of them have cultural farms, and we say look, it is our own desire to help anybody who wants to invest in Abuja, particularly in agriculture, in order to employ our people and in order to get more revenue. It has nothing to do with another country. It doesn’t work that way.
“When our people begin to think from different angles, people may not understand that it is not correct. So I would like to use this opportunity to say, look, we have to talk to our people. In fact, we must live harmoniously. We must live together to make sure that development is promoted.”
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