Adebayo Adenrele
The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has taken a swipe at governors elected on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC), describing them as “politically lazy” following their rejection of his proposed Rainbow Coalition ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Wike, who spoke on Arise TV prime time, insisted that his support for President Tinubu’s re-election had nothing to do with the APC’s internal structure or the interests of individual governors.
His comments came less than 24 hours after the APC Governors’ Forum, led by Imo State Governor and its Chairman, Hope Uzodimma, declared that its members would neither participate in, support nor endorse any political alliance capable of weakening the APC or adversely affecting its candidates in the 2027 elections.
The governors’ position followed a closed-door meeting at the Imo State Governor’s Lodge in Abuja on Monday night, where they reaffirmed their commitment to the APC and its candidates at all levels.
But Wike, who has remained a member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) while serving in the APC-led Federal Government, dismissed the governors’ opposition, saying they should deal with their respective state political challenges instead of using Tinubu’s re-election as justification.
According to him, “When you have your local problems, don’t use Mr President as your excuse.
“I have said I will support the President and I am still supporting him. What has that got to do with my party?
“Under Governor Hope Uzodimma, 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?
“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?
“They were not happy that I was Minister of FCT. Also, they were unhappy when I was Governor.
“If you’re really a leader that is on ground, that knows what their people want, there’s nothing you cannot do with them”.
