• Describes them as politically lazy, says he won’t take ‘rubbish’
•Insists only president can question him, not governors
•Reveals APC govs never wanted him appointed as minister
•Casts doubts over capacity of Uzodimma, others to win elections for Tinubu
•Declares president will win Bayelsa, FCT through his influence
•Wike’s backing for non-APC candidates pitches him against govs
Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja
Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, last night said governors elected on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC) were unaware of his political discussions with President Bola Tinubu, insisting that he had personally informed the president about the “Rainbow Coalition” he was building ahead of the 2027 elections.
Wike, who spoke on Arise Television, also described the APC governors as “smart” but “politically lazy”, while questioning their ability to deliver the president in their respective states next year.
His comments came hours after the Progressive Governors Forum (PGF) led by the Imo State Governor, Hope Uzodimma, rejected what the body termed political alliances capable of weakening the APC or undermining Tinubu’s re-election bid. The governors said they would not support any arrangement that could create divided loyalty or adversely affect APC candidates at any level.
But Wike dismissed their concerns, saying they had no understanding of the discussions he had held with Tinubu.
“When I see the people who were at that press conference, they are smart…but they are politically lazy. Very unfortunate. I have told you here, there has never been a day … Mr President knows. There is nothing that I have done that I have never told Mr President, ‘This is what I intend to do.’ If they know what I know, they won’t come out to say that,” he argued.
According to him, his support for Tinubu was never negotiated with the APC governors or the party, stressing that he and other members of the G5 had similarly supported Tinubu in 2023 without first consulting the APC.
Wike said his decision to support Tinubu in 2027 was based on his belief that the presidency should remain in the South after eight years of the Muhammadu Buhari administration, and because he believed Tinubu was committed to changing Nigeria.
“I said I was going to support the President, and I supported him. I said I was going to support him to finish his second term because I have seen that he’s committed and dedicated to changing Nigeria. What has that got to do with the party?” he asked.
The minister argued that support for Tinubu at the presidential level did not necessarily mean support for APC candidates in governorship or legislative elections, citing the voting pattern in the 2023 elections.
He particularly challenged Uzodimma over the performance of APC in Imo State, where, according to Wike, Tinubu received less than 10 per cent of the presidential votes while APC won two Senate seats on the same day.
“He was the governor of Imo State. Mr President didn’t get 10 per cent in his state. But he took two senators, and the Labour Party took one senator in Imo State. As a sitting governor, you have a President running under your party, and you couldn’t give him 10 per cent of the total votes? The Labour Party scored 360,000, the APC scored 66,000. Now, is he saying that the people of Imo State were confused?” he stressed.
Wike also cited Ebonyi, where he said Tinubu lost the presidential election while APC won three Senate seats, arguing that the results demonstrated that voters could support different parties in different contests.
He therefore questioned the capacity of some of the APC governors at the briefing to translate their control of state structures into presidential votes, saying their influence should first be demonstrated in their own states.
“Yes, they are governors, I agree. I’m not disputing that they have influence. But the influence should come more in your own state as far as this election is concerned. The influence should come more in your own state because, at the end of the day, if Mr President does not win in your state, what will you be talking about?” he asked.
Wike also rejected the suggestion that his political relevance depended on retaining his ministerial position, insisting that it is only Tinubu that can question him and not APC governors.
He further disclosed that opposition to his appointment as FCT minister by some APC governors was not new, alleging that some of them had been unhappy with his emergence from the beginning.
“It started as Minister of FCT. They were not happy that I should be given the position of Minister of FCT,” he said.
Wike also recalled his political battles with PDP governors, alleging that some of the same governors who were now criticising his political activities had previously urged their colleagues to move against him.
“When I was having a crisis with my colleagues, the PDP governors, these were the same people who were telling the governor… There were about 10 governors in the Governors Forum meeting, telling the governors they should make sure they deal with Wike, that ‘it’s enough for him.’ Thinking that their governors would succeed, they failed!” he said.
The FCT minister said he would not be dictated to by governors, stressing that his political relationship with Tinubu gave the president the only authority to question his actions. “The only person that can question me today is the President. No other person!” Wike declared.
He also insisted that he had not sought personal financial support from Tinubu for his political activities. “In all this I do, I have never gone to Mr President for a dime. In all this I do, I have never, and I will not do it!” he said.
On the FCT, Wike claimed that the APC governors had previously tried to undermine his performance in the territory, including during elections, but failed. He said the scale of development projects executed under his watch had also contributed to the unease among some politicians.
“I’m an FCT Minister, I’m not a governor. I don’t attend the Governors Forum meeting. But whatever resources I get, the world sees it. The world sees it!” he said.
The minister maintained that his focus was on mobilising support for Tinubu’s re-election and not guaranteeing victories for APC candidates in state and legislative contests.
He said politicians facing difficulties in their states should resolve them locally rather than using Tinubu’s presidential bid to settle their own political disputes. Wike said the APC governors should therefore concentrate on winning their own elections, arguing that the presidential contest should not be used as a cover for weaknesses at the state level.
“If you are really a leader that is on ground, that knows what your people want, there’s nothing you cannot do with them. Nothing!” he said. “It’s just that people just sit there in Abuja, two months, they go to the state, two days, they come back to Abuja. That is not service to the nation at all. That is not a service to your state.”
He said the Rainbow Coalition was designed to mobilise support for Tinubu across political parties and not to take control of the APC. “The coalition is not an APC structure. I have never one day gone to the APC forum to form an alliance,” Wike said.
According to him, apart from the FCT, Tinubu will also win seamlessly in Bayelsa where he (Wike) is working to ensure that the so-called rainbow coalition takes root.
Wike’s reaction followed the APC governors’ declaration on Monday that they would not participate in or endorse any alliance capable of undermining the party, Tinubu’s re-election or APC candidates. Specifically, Uzodimma said the governors’ campaign commitment remained to APC candidates at all levels.
Flashpoints: Wike Backs Candidates against Govs in Six States
Checks by THISDAY showed that there are several political flashpoints in which Wike is supporting candidates other than those backed by incumbent governors, particularly in states where he has fallen out with the governors or their political camps.
In Imo State, Wike is backing the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate, Samuel Anyanwu, against Governor Hope Uzodimma’s camp, while also supporting former governor Rochas Okorocha in the contest for the Imo West Senatorial District against the governor. In Ogun State, THISDAY gathered that he is backing PDP governorship candidate, Ladi Adebutu, against Governor Dapo Abiodun and his political allies.
Similar alignments are said to exist in Gombe and Cross River states, where Wike is supporting PDP candidates against the positions of the incumbent governors. In Benue, he is said to be backing former Attorney-General of the Federation, Michael Aondoakaa, the PDP governorship candidate, against Governor Hyacinth Alia.
In the same vein, in Kwara State, Wike is supporting another political camp against Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq’s. He is backing Senator Saliu Mustapha in the contest for the Kwara Central Senatorial District. Mustapha, a former member of the APC left the party after failing to secure its ticket and subsequently joined the PDP to contest the 2027 election.
Wike also has political differences with Ebonyi State Governor Francis Nwifuru, adding the state to the wider list of flashpoints involving the FCT minister and APC governors.
Despite these alignments, the PDP candidates Wike is backing in several of the states, THISDAY gathered, are themselves supporters of President Bola Tinubu, meaning his opposition to particular governors does not necessarily translate into opposition to the president.
Interestingly, this distinction has featured prominently in Wike’s explanation of his political strategy ahead of the 2027 elections.