A young Nigerian Navy officer, Lt. A.M. Yerima, who recently clashed with Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Nyesom Wike, has reportedly survived a suspected assassination attempt in Abuja, military sources say.
According to reports, Yerima was driving on Sunday evening when he noticed two unmarked Hilux vans without number plates, occupied by men dressed in black, trailing him from the NIPCO Filling Station off the Kubwa/Line Expressway to Gado Nasco Way.
Sensing danger, the officer was said to have executed a “strategic manoeuvre” to shake off the vehicles, successfully evading the suspected assailants at about 6:30 p.m. The incident has since been reported through military channels.
A senior source quoted in multiple outlets said the case is “under investigation and is receiving the seriousness it deserves,” adding that further details are being withheld to avoid compromising ongoing inquiries.
The scare comes just days after Lt. Yerima was seen in a viral video standing his ground during a tense confrontation with Minister Wike at a disputed land site in Gaduwa District of Abuja. In the footage, Wike is heard berating the officer during a planned demolition exercise, prompting widespread public debate and rare criticism of the minister’s tone towards a serving military officer.
The Presidency later ordered a halt to the demolition at the site pending further review, while the Nigerian Navy quietly backed Yerima’s conduct as lawful.
In the aftermath, military veterans across the country rallied behind Yerima and condemned Wike’s language. The spokesman of the Coalition of Retired Veterans, Abiodun Durowaiye-Herberts, warned that ex-service members would “occupy the office and residence of the FCT Minister” if any disciplinary action was taken against the officer.
“How can a public office holder call an officer ‘a fool’ on camera?” he asked, arguing that such conduct “undermines national institutions and demeans the dignity of public office.”
Amid the uproar, Minister of Defence Mohammad Badaru Abubakar moved to calm tensions, assuring that no military personnel acting within the law would be punished over the altercation.
“We will always protect officers and our armed forces personnel on lawful duty,” he said during a briefing for the 2026 Armed Forces Remembrance Day. “Any officer on lawful duty will be protected if he is doing his job lawfully and doing it well.”
The Nigerian Navy has not issued a formal public statement on the alleged assassination attempt, and there is no evidence so far directly linking the incident to the earlier clash with the FCT Minister.
For now, Yerima’s case has become a lightning rod in the wider debate over civil–military relations, political power, and the safety of security personnel who insist on following the rules in the line of duty.
