RismadarVoice Reporters
September 16, 2026
Tensions are escalating between Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, and some governors of the All Progressives Congress (APC) over the activities of the Rainbow Coalition ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Wike, a member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) serving in the APC-led Federal Government, has been mobilising support for President Bola Tinubu’s re-election while maintaining that the PDP should remain free to field candidates against APC candidates in other elections.
The development has triggered a disagreement with APC governors, who insist that their campaign efforts will be focused exclusively on candidates sponsored by the ruling party.
The Chairman of the Progressive Governors’ Forum and Imo State Governor, Hope Uzodimma, stated after a meeting of APC governors in Abuja on Monday night that the forum would not support any alliance or political arrangement capable of undermining Tinubu’s re-election or weakening the party.
Uzodimma said the governors had resolved to support APC candidates at all levels.
“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,” he said.
He added that the governors’ campaign commitment was exclusively to APC candidates and that the party’s campaign structure would align with Tinubu’s re-election bid and the strategic objectives of the APC.
Wike, however, rejected the interpretation that his support for Tinubu amounted to backing APC candidates across the country.
Through his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communications and Social Media, Lere Olayinka, the minister reiterated that his support was specifically for Tinubu’s re-election and did not prevent the PDP from contesting governorship, National Assembly and state assembly elections.
Wike said the Rainbow Coalition was not an APC platform but an arrangement involving politicians from different parties who support Tinubu’s administration and re-election.
He argued that political parties and candidates should be allowed to pursue their interests in other elections while supporting the President at the presidential level.
“Politics is local and those having problems in their states should resolve them instead of re-election of the President to whip up sentiments,” Wike said.
Speaking later on Arise TV’s Prime Time, Wike dismissed the concerns raised by the APC governors, accusing them of being politically “lazy” and insisting that his support for Tinubu had not amounted to abandoning the PDP.
“I have said I will support the President and I am still supporting him. What has that got to do with my party?” he asked.
Wike also cited the political outcomes of the 2023 elections in Imo, Abia, Enugu and Ebonyi states, where voters supported different parties at presidential and National Assembly levels.
He questioned whether such voting patterns amounted to confusion, arguing that voters could support Tinubu for president while choosing candidates from other parties for state and legislative positions.
The minister urged political stakeholders to prioritise Tinubu’s presidential campaign before turning their attention to contests in their respective states.
“What I said and stand for is that I will mobilise support for the election of the President. I never promised anyone that PDP will not field candidates to contest governorship, National Assembly and state Houses of Assembly elections,” he said.
Wike has previously accused Uzodimma and Kwara State Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq of being behind some of the political challenges confronting him in Rivers State and elsewhere.
The minister has linked the disagreement to the expanding influence of the Rainbow Coalition and its reported efforts to support candidates seeking to challenge APC politicians in various states.
However, APC leaders who spoke on condition of anonymity attributed the disagreement to wider political interests, including positioning for the 2031 presidency and control of the next National Assembly.
One of the sources claimed that Wike and Uzodimma were among politicians seeking to strengthen their political influence ahead of 2031.
The source also alleged that the rivalry had extended into political contests in Rivers, Imo, Kwara and other states, where different camps were supporting candidates perceived to be aligned with their interests.
Another APC source said some governors were uncomfortable with Wike’s continued membership of the PDP while serving in the APC-led Federal Government and using his political influence to support candidates in legislative and governorship contests.
The source said the disagreement was therefore connected to both the 2027 elections and the positioning of political actors for 2031.
The allegations by the unnamed APC sources could not be independently verified.
The PDP’s Publicity Secretary, Jungudo Mohammed, defended Wike’s position, arguing that supporting Tinubu as president did not amount to endorsing the APC.
Mohammed said Wike remained a significant political actor and that the PDP would continue to field candidates for the 2027 elections.
He dismissed suggestions that Wike’s support for Tinubu would translate into support for APC candidates in state and legislative contests.
According to him, the PDP had already presented candidates for the elections and would compete against the APC.
Mohammed also urged APC governors to concentrate on governance and delivering projects in their respective states rather than focusing on Wike’s political activities.
Meanwhile, the National Publicity Secretary of the PDP’s Turaki-led Interim National Working Committee, Ini Ememobong, criticised the arrangement that allowed Wike to serve in an APC-led government while remaining a PDP member.
Ememobong argued that the political arrangement had created contradictions that were now affecting the APC and its governors.
He described the Rainbow Coalition as inconsistent with conventional party structures and warned that such arrangements could create political complications.
Efforts to obtain comments from APC National Publicity Secretary Felix Morka, his deputy, Duro Meseko, and the Presidency were unsuccessful as of the time the report was filed.
The dispute comes as political actors intensify preparations for the 2027 elections, with disagreements over alliances, party loyalty and candidate support increasingly becoming a major feature of the emerging political landscape.
