By Hon. Comrade James Onifade 
By: Hon Comrade James Onifade
In a stunning display of political arrogance, Nigeria’s Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has openly boasted about his role in manipulating the judiciary to undermine Osun State’s local government funds case.
This confession, wrapped in warnings against party ingratitude, has exposed the rot at the heart of Nigeria’s democratic institutions and confirmed what many have long suspected: Wike operates not as a builder, but as a destroyer.
The Boastful Confession
Wike’s admission that he helped the All Progressives Congress use the judiciary to “kill” Osun State’s local government funds case is not just politically reckless, it is a direct assault on the independence of the judiciary.
By publicly claiming credit for judicial manipulation, the FCT Minister has effectively declared that Nigeria’s courts can be weaponized by those with power and influence, reducing the temple of justice to a marketplace where outcomes are purchased by political godfathers.
This is the same man who, as Rivers State governor, cried foul whenever he perceived judicial bias against his interests. Now, drunk on federal power, he celebrates the very corruption of judicial independence he once condemned. The hypocrisy is staggering, but not surprising from a man whose political career has been defined by vendetta and destruction.
A Call for National Judicial Council Intervention
The Osun State government must immediately petition the National Judicial Council (NJC) over this matter. Wike’s public boast provides prima facie evidence of external interference in judicial proceedings. If judges or judicial officers colluded with political actors to predetermine the outcome of a case involving state funds, this represents one of the gravest violations of judicial ethics imaginable.
The NJC cannot remain silent in the face of such brazen admission. To do so would be to confirm that Nigeria’s judiciary has become a tool in the hands of political strongmen, rather than an independent arbiter of justice. Every judge who participated in the Osun LG funds case must be investigated. Every communication between judicial officers and political actors must be scrutinized. The integrity of the entire judicial process demands nothing less.
Where Are the Activists? Where Are the Defenders of Democracy? But this fight cannot and should not be left to the Osun State government alone. This is a moment that demands collective action from all Nigerians who value judicial independence and democratic accountability. Where are Nigeria’s civil society organizations? Where are the human rights activists who have built their reputations fighting against injustice?
The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) must speak with one voice. The legal profession cannot remain silent when one of the country’s most powerful politicians openly boasts of corrupting judicial processes. The NBA has a constitutional and moral duty to defend judicial independence. If lawyers do not rise to this occasion, they become complicit in the destruction of the very system that gives their profession meaning.
SERAP (Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project), which has consistently challenged governmental abuse of power, must immediately launch an investigation and legal action. This is precisely the kind of institutional corruption that threatens the foundation of democratic governance.
The Civil Liberties Organisation (CLO), HURIWA (Human Rights Writers Association), and other human rights groups must mobilize public opinion and legal resources. Wike’s confession is not just an Osun State problem, it is a national crisis that threatens every Nigerian’s access to impartial justice.
BudgIT, Connected Development (CODE), and other civic tech and transparency organizations must shine a spotlight on this judicial manipulation. They must demand full disclosure of all communications between political actors and judicial officers in the Osun case.
The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress (TUC) must recognize that when local government funds are stolen through judicial manipulation, it is Nigerian workers and citizens who suffer. The labor movement has a stake in ensuring that public funds reach the people they are meant to serve.
Nigerian women’s groups, youth organizations, and student unions must add their voices. This is about the future of Nigeria’s democracy. If judicial manipulation becomes normalized, no Nigerian will have recourse to justice, regardless of their political affiliation or social status.
Media organizations and journalist unions must investigate and expose the full extent of this scandal. The fourth estate has a responsibility to hold power accountable, and Wike’s boast presents a rare opportunity where the perpetrator has confessed publicly.
The Destroyer’s Pattern
But Wike’s judicial manipulation in Osun is merely the latest chapter in a long story of destruction. Consider his record: he destroyed his own party’s chances in Rivers State, ensuring that his successor would not emerge from the Peoples Democratic Party. He has turned the FCT into his personal fiefdom, demolishing properties and livelihoods with the same casual cruelty he applies to political opponents.
He boasts of withholding federal support from PDP-controlled states, essentially punishing Nigerian citizens for their governors’ party affiliation.
Wike does not build; he bulldozes. He does not unite; he divides. He does not strengthen institutions; he corrupts them. His political philosophy can be summed up in a single principle: if I cannot control it, I will destroy it.
This is the man who now lectures others about gratitude. The irony would be laughable if the consequences were not so tragic for Nigerian democracy. What gratitude does Nigeria owe to someone who has made a career of undermining democratic institutions? What thanks is due to a political actor who treats the judiciary as his personal enforcement arm?
The Danger of Unchecked Power
Wike’s boast reveals a deeper crisis in Nigerian politics: the complete absence of accountability for powerful political actors. He can openly admit to corrupting judicial processes and face no consequences. He can demolish properties without due process. He can starve opposition states of federal support. And through it all, he faces no sanction, no rebuke from those who appointed him, no legal consequences for his actions.
This impunity emboldens other political actors to follow his example. If Wike can boast of manipulating the judiciary without fear of consequence, what message does this send to other ministers, governors, and political appointees? It tells them that power, once acquired, can be wielded without restraint or accountability.
The response to Wike’s confession must be collective, coordinated, and unrelenting.
Nigeria needs robust mechanisms to prevent and punish judicial corruption. Civil society must push for legislation that criminalizes political interference in judicial matters, with severe penalties including removal from office and criminal prosecution.
A Test for Nigeria’s Democratic Institutions
The Osun local government funds case and Wike’s role in it now represents a test for Nigeria’s democratic institutions. Will the National Judicial Council investigate and hold accountable those who corrupted the judicial process?
Will the legal profession speak out against this assault on judicial independence? Will civil society demand accountability? Or will this, like so many other outrages, fade into the background noise of Nigerian politics?
The answers to these questions will determine whether Nigeria remains a democracy or descends further into a system where power trumps justice, where political godfathers can openly boast of corrupting institutions without consequence.
To Nigerian activists, civil society organizations, professional bodies, and ordinary citizens: this is your moment. If you remain silent now, you forfeit your right to complain when the destroyer comes for you, your community, or your cause. Wike’s confession has handed you the evidence you need.
The question is whether you have the courage to act on it.
The Osun State government cannot fight this battle alone.
This is not a partisan issue, it is a question of whether Nigeria will have functioning democratic institutions or become a banana republic where strongmen rule by intimidation and institutional corruption.
History will judge Nyesom Wike not as a builder or a statesman, but as a destroyer who used every tool at his disposal including the corruption of the judiciary to settle political scores and maintain personal power. His boast about the Osun case is not a moment of triumph, but a confession that demands investigation, accountability, and consequences.
But history will also judge Nigeria’s activists, lawyers, civil society organizations, and ordinary citizens. Will they rise to this occasion, or will they let the destroyer continue his work unchecked?
The time for action is now. The evidence is public. The destroyer has confessed. What remains is for Nigeria’s defenders of democracy to rise and hold him accountable.
E-signed: Hon Comrade James Onifade
Advocate for Good Governance and A Better Judicial System