Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has criticised Imo State Governor Hope Uzodimma, Ogun State Governor Dapo Abiodun and Kwara State Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq over their opposition to the proposed Rainbow Coalition ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Wike made the comments on Monday, September 21, during an interview on TVC News’ Journalists’ Hangout, amid growing disagreements between him and some All Progressives Congress (APC) governors over the coalition.
The FCT minister alleged that the concerns surrounding the coalition were linked to attempts by some governors to influence the emergence of lawmakers who would eventually occupy leadership positions in the National Assembly.
He argued that politicians should be free to support President Bola Tinubu in the presidential election while contesting legislative and governorship elections on other political platforms.
Wike specifically cited Kwara State, claiming that Governor AbdulRazaq had prevented sitting senators and members of the House of Representatives from seeking re-election.
“Now let’s start from Kwara State. Kwara State has a sitting governor, has three sitting senators. He removed all of them. Fine. He has Reps members. He removed all of them. Fine,” Wike said.
He said politicians affected by such decisions could seek tickets on platforms such as the African Democratic Congress (ADC) or Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), while still supporting Tinubu for president.
“Now having removed them and there are other alternatives. The alternatives to go to ADC or go to NDC,” he said.
Wike argued that such politicians could retain their political positions while backing Tinubu in the presidential contest.
“You have to say, look, let me go and get ticket here and support Tinubu but be re-elected as a senator or a member of the House of Representatives,” he said.
He questioned why such an arrangement should be considered a threat to the President.
“How will it be a problem if they have gone to ADC and have gone to NDC, who are frontally opposed to Mr. President?” Wike asked.
The minister also alleged that some governors wanted politicians who support Tinubu to refrain from contesting legislative and governorship positions.
“All they want me to do is to say since you’re supporting President, nobody should run for National Assembly. Nobody should run for State Assembly. Nobody should run for governor. Where do you see that happen?” he said.
Wike maintained that the political tensions were the result of internal party decisions rather than the activities of the Rainbow Coalition.
He alleged that some governors were seeking to influence party primaries in order to produce lawmakers who would support their political interests and potentially influence the next leadership of the National Assembly.
Wike also linked the disagreement to Uzodimma’s reported interest in becoming Senate President after leaving office.
“This man wants to leave his office to run for Senate. Now what does that mean? He wants to run for Senate President,” Wike said.
He has separately declared that he would not support Uzodimma’s reported Senate presidency ambition.
Wike said politicians who lose party tickets as a result of internal decisions would naturally explore other political platforms.
“The fear now is that if they run and they win, it means that they’re not going to support him to be the president,” he said.
The minister maintained that supporting Tinubu should not prevent politicians from contesting other elections under their preferred platforms.
“Mr. President, everybody in all the states support President, support Mr. President. You want to run for Senate, House of Governorship is internal affairs,” he said.
Wike has consistently maintained that his involvement in the Rainbow Coalition is primarily aimed at mobilising support for Tinubu’s re-election and does not mean the PDP or other political parties should withdraw their candidates from governorship and legislative contests.
The APC Governors Forum, however, has maintained that its members remain committed to the party and its candidates ahead of the 2027 elections, setting the stage for continued political disagreements over the coalition.
Wike, nevertheless, dismissed concerns that the Rainbow Coalition would undermine Tinubu’s political interests, asking: “Why will Rainbow Coalition be a problem?”
