Lt. A.M. Yarima, a young Nigerian Navy officer who recently had a confrontation with FCT Minister Nyesom Wike, reportedly escaped an assassination attempt on Sunday evening.
According to military sources, Yarima was being followed by unidentified men dressed in black in two unmarked Hilux vans with no number plates. The vehicles allegedly trailed him from the NIPCO Filling Station off the Line Expressway to Gado Nasco Way.
The sources said Yarima noticed the surveillance and carried out a “strategic maneuver,” successfully evading the suspected assailants. The incident occurred around 6:30 p.m., and authorities are investigating the matter with “the seriousness it deserves,” though further details have been withheld to avoid compromising the probe.
The attempted attack follows a tense confrontation between Yarima and Wike at a disputed land site in Gaduwa District, which was captured on video. The incident drew national attention and led the Presidency to halt the demolition exercise at the location.
Military veterans have condemned Wike’s verbal insult toward Yarima and opposed any disciplinary action against the officer. Abiodun Durowaiye-Herberts, spokesman for the Coalition of Retired Veterans, warned that ex-service members would “occupy the office and residence of the FCT Minister” if Yarima faced punishment.
Durowaiye-Herberts stressed that military personnel owe allegiance to Nigeria, not individual officials, and called on Wike to apologize for his remarks. “How can a public office holder call an officer ‘a fool’ on camera?” he asked, adding that such behavior undermines national institutions and demeans public office.
Meanwhile, Minister of Defence Mohammad Badaru Abubakar assured that no military personnel acting lawfully would face sanctions over the altercation. “We will always protect officers and our armed forces personnel on lawful duty,” Badaru said during a ministerial briefing for the 2026 Armed Forces Remembrance Day celebrations at the National Defence College. “Any officer on lawful duty will be protected if he is doing his job lawfully and doing it well.”
Veterans had previously vowed to mobilize and occupy the FCT Ministry if Yarima faced disciplinary action.