The self-styled Bishop, addressing the crowd and the camera, launched a personal attack on Sowore for calling a minister “brainless,” while lavishly praising Wike’s performance as FCT Minister.
The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has reportedly sponsored a staged protest and engaged a self-proclaimed cleric to verbally attack former presidential candidate and human rights activist, Omoyele Sowore, as well as Nigerian lawyer and rights campaigner, Deji Adeyanju, following their criticisms of an alleged illegal land allocation in Maitama Extension, Abuja.
The allegations are linked to Wike’s decision to allocate a designated green area in Maitama Extension for the construction of luxury residential duplexes.
The allocation and proposed construction reportedly constitute a clear violation of the Abuja Master Plan, which expressly designates such areas as protected green zones meant for environmental preservation.
Sowore and Adeyanju had recently condemned the development, accusing the FCT administration of sacrificing Abuja’s ecological future for elite real estate interests.
However, their criticisms appear to have triggered a coordinated response from pro-Wike elements.
In a video obtained by SaharaReporters, an acclaimed Bishop was seen leading a group of protesters carrying placards in open support of Wike’s actions.
WATCH: Hired Pro-Wike Supporters, Including ‘Fake Bishop’, Attack Sowore, Deji Adeyanju Over Alleged Illegal Abuja Area Allocation pic.twitter.com/EUQOY3gYYw
— Sahara Reporters (@SaharaReporters) January 30, 2026
The protesters were filmed endorsing the controversial allocation of the protected green area and attacking Wike’s critics in aggressive and threatening language.
The self-styled Bishop, addressing the crowd and the camera, launched a personal attack on Sowore for calling a minister “brainless,” while lavishly praising Wike’s performance as FCT Minister.
“People like Sowore that are calling a minister a brainless man. Hence, Sowore, it won’t be well with you,” the man said in the video. “If you have eyes, you can clearly see that Wike has done a great job in Abuja. We pray that the Honourable Minister has done great work in Abuja.”
He prayed for President Bola Tinubu to retain Wike in office for eight years.
“We pray that the Honourable President will continue to sustain Wike for the next eight years. Abuja will become like the United States. We pray for long life, sound health, and protection for him. May God thunder and scatter every enemy of progress and every enemy of the minister in the name of Jesus,” he declared, prompting loud “Amen” responses from the protesters.
Meanwhile, the Bishop insisted that the protesters were not sponsored.
“We are here not because we are bribed or being paid. We are here on our own personal volition to give our support to the Honourable Minister,” he claimed. “We are saying to him he should never be distracted. Once you are doing a good job, distractions will come.”
Continuing his remarks, the Bishop framed opposition to the Maitama project as a direct attack on local communities.
“The projects of Wike are knocking at my doorstep. Anybody that wants to remove those projects is not an enemy of Wike alone; such a person is an enemy of me and my community,” he said.
“We are calling on well-meaning Nigerians and citizens of the FCT to give Wike support. Let him finish what he has started.”
He also attempted to contrast Wike with previous FCT ministers, insisting that visible infrastructure projects justified any criticism.
“Previous ministers could not do what he has done, but within the space of almost two years, it is very clear that the projects of Barrister Nyesom Wike are visible, even to the blind. Everybody can see it,” he added.
SaharaReporters previously reported that Wike had been accused of allocating a designated green area in Maitama Extension, Abuja, for the construction of luxury residential buildings, in clear violation of the Abuja Master Plan.
The land is reportedly located right by Ukachukwu Close, near the Maitama Extension.
The disputed land, which is said to be a protected green zone meant to serve as a natural buffer and drainage corridor, is allegedly being developed into a high-end residential estate consisting of about 20 duplexes.
SaharaReporters learnt that the development has raised concerns among residents, who warn that the project could lead to severe flooding and long-term environmental degradation in one of Abuja’s most prestigious districts.
Reacting to developments, Adeyanju condemned the construction, describing it as an act of institutionalised greed that places private profit above public safety and environmental sustainability.
Adeyanju explained that developers had fenced off the green area and commenced massive construction activities, despite the land’s original designation as a non-developable zone.
Even more disturbing, he said, was the fact that the developers, having realised that the estate had no approved access road, had allegedly resorted to converting a natural water channel into a makeshift road.
“I have just discovered that about 20 duplexes are being constructed on a designated green area in Maitama Extension,” Adeyanju said.
“Even more alarming is the fact that the developers have now realised there is no access road to the estate and have resorted to converting a canal into a road.”
According to him, the canal in question serves as a natural drainage channel for the area, especially during the rainy season, and tampering with it could spell disaster for residents of Maitama Extension and adjoining communities.
“One can only imagine the environmental disaster and severe flooding that Maitama Extension will face during the rainy season. How do you fence off a green area and then proceed to turn a natural water channel into a road, all in the name of greed?” he said.
Green areas within Abuja are protected under the Abuja Master Plan and are designed to prevent erosion, manage stormwater, preserve ecological balance, and enhance the city’s livability.
“This is a blatant distortion of the Abuja Master Plan,” Adeyanju stated. “It raises serious questions about how Development Control could have approved such a project in the first place.”
Adeyanju expressed fear that unchecked construction on green zones would worsen flooding, damage roads, and reduce property values.
On Thursday, SaharaReporters reported that a group of pro-Wike supporters had been mobilized and gathered in front of Monoliza, along Umoru Diko Way off Ahmadu Bello Way in the FCT, on Wednesday.
The gathering came as workers under the Joint Action Committee continued their industrial action, protesting unresolved welfare and labour-related grievances.
Sources familiar with the development told SaharaReporters that the protest was not organic but coordinated to counter growing public sympathy for the striking workers.
According to the sources, some of the individuals at the scene were brought in from different parts of the city and conveyed in multiple vehicles.
A video obtained by SaharaReporters shows several individuals clustered at the protest ground, holding placards in support of Wike and the FCT administration.
In the footage, different vehicles can be seen dropping off protesters, while some participants appear unsure of the messages written on the placards they carried.
The Joint Action Committee has accused the FCT authorities of failing to honour agreements and neglecting workers’ welfare, leading to the ongoing strike that has disrupted activities across several government offices and services in Abuja.