Threat or Figure of Speech? Wike Clarifies “Shoot” Remark as Amnesty, ADC, 14 Civil Society Groups Demand Apology

Is it a threat or a figure of speech?

That question is now at the center of a growing controversy involving FCT Minister Nyesom Wike, Channels Television presenter Seun Okinbaloye, and a coalition of press freedom advocates.

The trouble began when Okinbaloye, during the Thursday edition of Politics Today, suggested Nigeria was drifting toward a one-party state—citing the crisis rocking the African Democratic Congress (ADC) as evidence.

“If there was any way to break the screen, I would have shot him,” Wike responded during a live media chat on Friday.

Channels TV anchor Seun Okinbaloye

Outrage Erupts

Amnesty International swiftly condemned the remark as “reckless and violent,” demanding an immediate retraction and apology.

“What Wike said carries the danger of normalizing violence and encouraging the targeting of journalists for just doing their job,” the global human rights group stated.

Fourteen civil society organizations—including the International Press Institute (IPI), Media Rights Agenda (MRA), Enough is Enough Nigeria (EIE), and the Centre for Journalism Innovation & Development (CJID)—joined the condemnation.

“Even hypothetical expressions of violent intent constitute a conditional threat and cannot be dismissed as harmless,” the groups said in a joint statement.

The African Democratic Congress (ADC) also weighed in. Spokesman Bolaji Abdullahi wrote on X: “Wike threatening to shoot Seun Okinbaloye for doing his job as a journalist is irresponsible and unacceptable. After destroying opposition parties, they now want to start shooting journalists.”

Nyesom Ezenwo Wike, Minister of the Federal Capital Territory

Wike Responds: “I Spoke Figuratively”

In a statement on Saturday, Wike’s Senior Special Assistant on Public Communications, Lere Olayinka, pushed back against the backlash.

“The Minister never meant that he will shoot Seun Okinbaloye,” Olayinka said, explaining that the remark was made in a “hyperbolic context” using exaggeration to express displeasure.

He added that Wike and Okinbaloye had since spoken by phone, and the journalist understood the intended meaning.

“Even after the Minister made clarifications on live television, all the journalists interviewing him just laughed,” Olayinka said.

Nyesom Wike and Seun Okinbaloye

The Bigger Picture

With Nigeria ranked 122 out of 180 countries on the press freedom index, the incident has reignited concerns about journalist safety and the responsibility of public officials—whether their words are literal or figurative.

For now, the debate remains unresolved: a threat disguised as rhetoric, or rhetoric mistaken for a threat?

Written by Boom RadioNG