Paul Ibe, Media Adviser to former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, has challenged the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, to publish invoices, funding sources and budget lines for live television broadcasts of his media chats.
Ibe made the demand in a post on his verified FB page on Tuesday while reacting to Wike’s latest live media chat, which he said involved at least eight broadcast outlets, including Arise News, Channels Television, TVC, News Central, AIT, JDK, Aso TV and Radio, and ADBN.
He questioned the cost of transmitting the minister’s media engagements, estimating that the broadcasts could run into hundreds of millions of naira per session and billions of naira annually.
According to Ibe, if each station charges between ₦10 million and ₦20 million per hour, a two-hour broadcast across eight stations could cost between ₦160 million and ₦320 million per session.
He further estimated that 12 monthly sessions at those rates could amount to between ₦1.92 billion and ₦3.84 billion.
However, Ibe did not provide invoices or independently verified figures to establish the actual amounts paid for the broadcasts.
“Minister Wike, publish the invoices. Identify the stations paid, the amounts, the funding sources and the relevant budget lines,” he demanded.
Ibe argued that residents of the FCT deserved transparency regarding the expenditure, particularly whether public funds were being used to communicate government activities or to advance the minister’s political disagreements.
Ibe maintained that such political exchanges should not displace discussions about the challenges facing residents of the Federal Capital Territory.
“Atiku and Amaechi are not infrastructure projects. ADC and NDC are not departments of the FCT Administration,” he said.
“The 2027 elections are no substitute for accountability on Abuja’s roads, water supply, schools, hospitals, sanitation and security.”
“FCT residents deserve to know whether their money is funding public accountability or political self-gratification,” he said.
He added: “The FCT treasury is not Wike’s personal political broadcasting account. Public office is not a licence to convert public funds into private political publicity.”
The demand places the question of transparency in public communication expenditure at the centre of the controversy, with Ibe insisting that any spending on the minister’s media engagements should be open to public scrutiny.
, Nyesom Wike, to publish invoices, funding sources and budget lines for live television broadcasts of his media chats.){kind=link}