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Comedian Mr Macaroni has criticised FCT Minister Nyesom Wike over comments he made about Seun Okinbaloye, a host on Channels TV.
Wike had, during a media chat with select journalists, strongly criticised Okinbaloye for suggesting that a one-party system would be harmful to Nigeria’s democracy.
Amid controversy surrounding the derecognition of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) leadership by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) following a court ruling, Okinbaloye raised concerns during Thursday’s edition of Politics Today about the implications of a one-party system.
He said: “I am particularly pained because what makes the race very interesting is when it is competitive—not when only one party stands in the middle of the ballot and you’re looking for the rest. When some of us speak, it’s as though our opinions don’t matter.
“There are a lot of experienced figures in the ADC who should have recognised some of the issues raised in recent months. It appears to be one of the major hopes of the opposition heading into 2027. If that hope is dashed, we are doomed democratically,” the anchor stated.
Reacting on Friday, April 3, Wike said he was angered by the comment, adding that he “would have shot” Okinbaloye for what he described as taking sides in the ADC leadership crisis on national television.
“I was thoroughly surprised yesterday while watching Seun’s Politics Today. If there was any way to break the screen, I would have shot him. How can an interviewer say we cannot allow a one-party state?” the minister said.
He later clarified: “I am not saying I will kill him. I was simply angered that he made that kind of statement on national television. This is not the kind of journalism I am used to.”
Responding, Mr Macaroni condemned the remark, writing:
“This is a so-called ‘serving’ minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria saying on a live broadcast that he wished he could have shot and killed a Nigerian journalist. It reflects a country where public servants become tyrants because they believe there are no consequences for misconduct.”
