RismadarVoice Reporters
September 16, 2026
The Peoples Democratic Party has said there is no contradiction in the continued membership of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, despite his mobilisation of political support for President Bola Tinubu’s re-election bid through the National Rainbow Coalition.
The development highlights the continuing political realignment ahead of the 2027 general elections, with Wike maintaining his membership of the PDP while openly supporting Tinubu outside the ruling All Progressives Congress.
Recent reports indicate that Wike has positioned the Rainbow Coalition as a broader political platform supporting Tinubu’s re-election rather than as an APC structure. Wike has also maintained that his support for Tinubu should not automatically be interpreted as support for the APC.
The PDP’s position effectively leaves Wike operating within the party while pursuing a political objective that differs from the PDP’s expected opposition role ahead of the 2027 election.
Wike, a former governor of Rivers State and a prominent PDP figure, has in recent weeks been associated with efforts to build a broader coalition of political actors around Tinubu. The proposed Rainbow Coalition has attracted attention because of its reported effort to draw support from across party lines.
The development has also generated reactions within the APC, with some party figures and governors questioning the emergence of a parallel political structure associated with Wike ahead of the election.
Wike’s political position has remained significant within the PDP since the 2023 election cycle, when his disagreements with the party’s presidential campaign leadership contributed to a major internal dispute.
His continued membership, while backing Tinubu, therefore places the PDP in an unusual position as it prepares for another presidential contest.
The party’s latest stance indicates that it does not regard Wike’s continued membership alone as incompatible with his decision to mobilise support for Tinubu through the Rainbow Coalition.
Meanwhile, the emergence of competing coalition structures is expected to remain a major feature of Nigeria’s political realignment ahead of the 2027 elections, as parties and political blocs seek to consolidate support across traditional party boundaries.
