2027: APC govs at daggers-drawn with Wike

***Why we moved against Wike’s Rainbow Coalition – APC govs

***Warn against parallel structures

By Omeiza Ajayi

ABUJA – State governors elected on the platform of All Progressives Congress, APC, were at daggers drawn with Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Abuja Minister, Mr. Nyesom Wike, yesterday, over creation of parallel political structures believed capable of undermining President Bola Tinubu’s re-election bid in 2027.

In a position widely seen as a direct response to the Rainbow Coalition championed by Wike, Chairman of the Progressive Governors Forum and Imo State governor, Senator Hope Uzodimma, who Wike had recently accused of sponsoring political attacks against him, made the declaration on behalf of the governors late Monday night, after a closed-door meeting at the Imo State Governor’s Lodge in Abuja.

The warning comes amid mounting friction within the APC over the coalition, with some powerful blocs in the party said to be pushing back against the arrangement over fears that it could split votes and damage Tinubu’s 2027 presidential chances.

The governors warned that coalition candidates flying different party flags could confuse rural voters, with the tensions already playing out in states, including Rivers, Kwara, Gombe and Cross River.

Uzodimma stated that no arrangement that creates confusion, divided loyalty or competing interests within the party will be entertained.

 According to him, the primary focus of the forum is to support official APC candidates at all levels, rather than external interests.

“The APC Governors Forum unanimously resolved that its members will not participate in, support or endorse any alliance or political arrangement capable of undermining the re-election of Mr President, weakening the APC or adversely affecting any candidate of the party at all levels.

“In other words, the forum has no intention to support any candidate at any level that is not an APC candidate because our candidates who are contesting the election are being sponsored by our party.

“The governors’ campaign commitment is exclusive to APC candidates. All levels of the party campaign architecture will align with the expectations of Mr President and the strategic objectives of the party,” Uzodimma said.

The Progressives governors also pledged to take charge of President Tinubu’s re-election campaign across their respective states.

Uzodimma, who read the communique, said the governors will not participate in any political alliance or arrangement capable of undermining President Tinubu’s re-election bid or weakening the APC.

The warning against parallel structures has been read in some quarters as an indirect message to Wike, who remains a registered member of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, but has continued to insist that the Rainbow Coalition exists solely to secure Tinubu’s re-election. 

A political storm has been gathering across the length and breadth of Nigeria since Wike’s Rainbow Coalition swept through some states, upturning old loyalties, splitting ruling party ranks, and leaving governors, senators and grassroots politicians scrambling to recalibrate their positions ahead of the 2027 general election.

From the ancient city of Ilorin to the creeks of Rivers State, from the hills of Cross River to the plains of Gombe, the coalition’s tentacles are reshaping the political map in ways that have left even seasoned watchers of Nigerian politics struggling to keep pace.

Wike fights back, slams Uzodimma

In a quick counter, the FCT minister queried why Uzodinma was unable to garner massive support for President Tinubu in the 2023 election, saying modern politics is no longer about coming from fourth position to emerge governor.

He insisted that his task ahead of 2027 is to mobilise support for Tinubu’s re-election, not to intervene in local politics in the states.

In a statement, yesterday, by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communications and Social Media, Lere Olayinka, the minister said the Rainbow Coalition has nothing to do with the APC, describing the coalition as a platform for other political parties pleased with the good works of the President and supporting his re-election.

Wike, who said he won’t be the one to help people win elections in their states, noted that “politics is local and those having problems in their states should resolve them instead of using the re-election of the President to whip up sentiments.”

Wike pointed out that he never met with the APC before he and other members of the G5 supported the President in 2023, adding that for 2027, his support is for the president only. 

The minister said politics is no longer about coming from fourth position to be governor, but about genuinely mobilising support and winning elections from the polling units.

Taking a direct swipe at Uzodinma’s home turf, he queried: “In Imo State under Governor Uzodinma, how did APC win two Senate seats in 2023, in an election held the same day with that of the President and APC had less than 15 per cent in the presidential election? Was it the rainbow coalition? Were the voters confused?

“Was it the rainbow coalition that also made APC to win National Assembly elections in Ebonyi, Abia and Enugu states where the President did not have 10 per cent of the votes?

“If in 2023, the voters in Imo, Abia, Enugu and Ebonyi voted APC in the senatorial election and voted another party in the presidential election, they won’t be confused in 2027, provided we all support the president genuinely this time.”

The minister urged all stakeholders to put the presidential election first, saying “after the President must have been reelected, we can all go and face elections in our states.

“What I said and stand for is that I will mobilise support for the re-election of the President. I never promised anyone that PDP will not field candidates to contest governorship, National Assembly and States House of Assembly elections.

“Most importantly, the rainbow coalition has nothing to do with the APC. Rather, it is its way of mobilising support across political parties for Mr President, who has done well, to deserve a second term.’’

Wike is a force to reckon with, not reject , PDP tells APC govs

Reacting yesterday, Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, hit back at the APC, governors over their reported rejection of Minister of the FCT, Nyesom Wike’s political support for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, saying the former Rivers State governor remains a formidable force ahead of the 2027 elections.

In a statement by the National Publicity Secretary, Jungudo Haruna Mohammed, the PDP said Wike has every constitutional and democratic right to choose whom he supports, arguing that his support for Tinubu did not mean he had abandoned the PDP or joined the APC.

“Wike has every constitutional and democratic right to decide whom he supports politically. His support for President Tinubu is legitimate, and as a serving appointee of the President, there is nothing contradictory about supporting the President while maintaining his political identity and relationships within the PDP,” Jungudo said.

The party said the APC governors had initially interpreted Wike’s support for Tinubu as an endorsement of the APC but were now confronted with the reality that the FCT minister could support the President while retaining his political identity and relationships within the PDP.

It described as a ‘fundamental political miscalculation’ any attempt by the governors to dictate whether Wike should support or field candidates capable of challenging them and their preferred candidates in 2027.

The PDP said every political party had the right to field candidates, adding that the reported position of the governors suggested that they were becoming increasingly anxious about facing strong opposition candidates at the polls.

“If they have truly performed and retained the confidence of their people, they should welcome a contest and allow the electorate to decide,” the party said.