The son of Nigeria’s capital city Minister Nyesom Wike has tendered his American passport before an Abuja High Court in a disputed $2.1 million land transaction, adding a fresh layer to the string of political and land-related controversies surrounding the former Rivers State governor.
Jordan Nyesom-Wike presented the passport on Wednesday before Justice Sylvanus Oriji of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, Maitama, as he continued his defence in a suit filed by Safwan Garba GY and GY Global Oil & Gas Nigeria Limited.
The claimants are seeking to recover $2.1 million they allege was paid to Jordan to facilitate the acquisition of 60 hectares of land in Abuja — 30 hectares each in Katampe and Guzape.
According to the claimants, Jordan allegedly demanded $2.1 million as facilitation fees, telling them that $2 million was intended for his father, the FCT Minister, while $100,000 was for him.
They alleged that the money was delivered in cash on September 26, 2025, in the presence of Adamu Sani, Aliyu Sarki and Sai Wani, while Jordan was accompanied by one Onor Sandy.
The claimants further alleged that after receiving the money, Jordan failed to facilitate the acquisition of the properties or refund the funds and subsequently became unreachable.
Jordan has denied the allegations, insisting that he had no involvement in the transaction and did not receive the money.
A crucial point in the proceedings emerged when he told the court that he was outside Nigeria on September 26, 2025 — the date the claimants said the money was handed to him in Abuja.
Asked how he travelled out of the country, Jordan said he used his American passport and indicated that he could produce it in court.
The claimants subsequently asked the court to compel him to produce the document. Justice Oriji granted the request, leading to the passport being tendered on Wednesday.
The court admitted the document in evidence, made a copy and returned the original to Jordan, while directing his counsel to produce it again whenever necessary during the proceedings.
The development comes against the backdrop of years of political and land-related controversies involving his father, who served as Rivers State governor before becoming FCT minister.
Wike’s political battle with his successor in Rivers State, Siminalayi Fubara, became one of Nigeria’s most consequential political disputes in recent years.
The feud over control of the state’s political structures escalated into competing factions in the Rivers State House of Assembly, impeachment proceedings and, eventually, President Bola Tinubu’s declaration of a state of emergency in March 2025, which suspended Fubara, his deputy and the state lawmakers.
Wike publicly supported the emergency rule and said at the time that he had wanted Fubara removed outright.
The former governor and his successor had been locked in a prolonged political struggle since Fubara assumed office in 2023.
His tenure as FCT minister has also generated controversy, particularly over the administration’s aggressive demolition and land-revocation exercises.
In December 2024, the Senate called for a halt to FCT demolitions except those authorised by the courts and constituted a committee to investigate demolitions carried out since Wike assumed office.
Senator Ireti Kingibe, representing the FCT, had alleged that some of the exercises were not in line with court rulings and had left residents homeless.
The FCT Administration, however, has consistently defended the exercises, maintaining that many of the affected structures were illegal, violated Abuja’s Master Plan or lacked valid titles.
Questions surrounding land revocations and reallocations have persisted. In December 2025, the Senate considered but ultimately withdrew a motion seeking to halt such actions by the FCT Administration.
While critics raised concerns over due process and alleged reallocation of revoked properties, supporters of Wike’s FCT policies argued that the minister was restoring order to Abuja and enforcing the city’s planning regulations.
The minister has also faced fresh legal controversy over a disputed Maitama property.
In February 2026, a lawyer representing the claimant alleged that FCT officials demolished part of the property despite a court order directing parties to maintain the status quo, and threatened contempt proceedings against Wike.
Against that backdrop, the $2.1 million case involving his son has drawn particular attention because the claimants allege that a substantial portion of the disputed money was intended for the FCT minister.
Neither the allegation against Wike nor the claim that Jordan received the money has been established by the court.
Jordan, represented by a legal team led by Senior Advocate of Nigeria Ogwu Onoja, has maintained his denial of the transaction.
The court has adjourned further proceedings until December 1, 2 and 14.
The case remains ongoing.
