A Senior Advocate of Nigeria and constitutional law expert, Prof. Sebastine Hon, has faulted the conduct of Naval Officer A.M. Yerima in his confrontation with the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, describing the officer’s action as a “breach of the law.”
Reacting to the incident in a Facebook post on Wednesday, Hon said Yerima’s attempt to stop the minister from accessing a disputed plot of land in Abuja could not be justified under any lawful military order.
“Brushing sentiments aside, I hereby condemn in totality the actions of the Naval Officer, A.M. Yerima, who obstructed the FCT Minister from gaining access into that parcel of land, under the guise of ‘obeying superior orders,’” he wrote.
According to Hon, the Supreme Court has made clear in Onunze v. State (2023) 8 NWLR (Pt. 1885) 61 and Nigeria Air Force v. James (2002) 18 NWLR (Pt. 798) 295 that military officers are not bound to obey illegal or manifestly unjust orders.
He said, “The illegality in that order stems primarily from the fact that no service law of the military permits a serving military officer to mount guard at the private construction site of his boss, especially under suspicious circumstances like this.”
Hon added that if genuine security concerns existed, “the retired Naval Officer ought, under the circumstances, to have engaged the civil police.”
The law professor also explained that under Sections 297(2) and 302 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), the FCT Minister exercises the powers of the President over land administration in Abuja.
“By Section 302 of the same Constitution, read together with other extant Acts of the National Assembly, the President of Nigeria has delegated all powers with respect to land administration in the FCT Abuja to the minister,” he said.
“Going by constitutional and administrative law, therefore, Mr Wike stood in loco of the President of Nigeria and Commander-in-Chief of the Nigerian Armed Forces on that fateful day. Consequently, even if the superior officer were still in service, he would not disobey Mr Wike or obstruct him from entering the land. This was an affront to the civil authority of Mr President.”
While acknowledging that Wike’s approach might appear brash, Hon said the minister’s action was lawful, while the officer’s behaviour violated both the Constitution and service regulations.
“For the avoidance of any doubt, Section 114 of the Armed Forces Act makes military personnel criminally liable for civil offences,” he added, noting that Yerima could be arraigned before a Court Martial for obstructing a public officer.
Hon warned against celebrating such acts, saying they could embolden security personnel to disrespect civil authorities.
“If such intolerable conduct by the young officer is not punished or is celebrated, this may unleash a reign of terror by the men in khaki against hapless civilians — with a grin or boast that ‘we did it to Wike and nothing happened,’” he wrote.
Prof. Hon’s comment adds to public debate over Tuesday’s confrontation between Wike and the naval officer at Plot 1946, Gaduwa District, Abuja, where Federal Capital Territory Administration officials were enforcing a stop-work or demolition order.
A video of the incident circulating on social media shows the minister and his team blocked by uniformed personnel, leading to a heated exchange.
Wike accused the soldiers and developers of land grabbing and vowed not to be intimidated. Speaking to reporters after the encounter, he said he would not yield to blackmail.
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“When they came here, I was informed that the military came to chase them away, and I thought they were acting illegally,” Wike said. “So today, while I was in the office, they came to implement the directive that was given to them by myself. I was told that the military had taken over the place, and I had to come by myself. It is really unfortunate.
“I do not understand how somebody who attained that position sees that he has a problem and cannot approach my office to say, ‘look, this is what is going on,’ but simply because he is a military man, he could use that to intimidate Nigerians. I am not one who will succumb to blackmail or intimidation.”