Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has drawn a line between his support for President Bola Tinubu's 2027 re-election bid and the participation of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in other elections.
Wike said his support was exclusively for Tinubu and should not be interpreted as an endorsement of the All Progressives Congress (APC) or a commitment by the PDP to withdraw from the 2027 governorship and legislative contests.
He made the clarification in a statement issued on Tuesday by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communications and Social Media, Lere Olayinka.
The minister also dismissed suggestions that the “rainbow coalition” being promoted by him and other political actors was an APC arrangement.
According to him, the coalition is simply an avenue for politicians from different parties to work together to secure Tinubu's re-election, based on their assessment of his performance.
“Politics is local, and those having problems in their states should resolve them instead of using the re-election of the President to whip up sentiments,” Wike said.
He recalled that he and members of the G5 did not have any agreement with the APC before backing Tinubu in the 2023 presidential election.
“I never met with the APC before I and other members of the G5 supported the President in 2023. My support in 2027 remains solely for the President,” he said.
Wike argued that the political calculations surrounding 2027 should focus on actual voter mobilisation rather than assumptions about how supporters of different parties would behave.
He pointed to the 2023 elections in Imo, Abia, Enugu and Ebonyi states, where voters made different choices in presidential and National Assembly elections conducted on the same day.
“In Imo State, under Governor Hope Uzodimma, how did APC win two Senate seats in 2023, in an election held the same day as that of the President, when APC had less than 15 per cent in the presidential election? Was it a rainbow coalition? Were the voters confused?” he asked.
He similarly questioned how the APC secured National Assembly victories in Abia, Enugu and Ebonyi despite Tinubu recording less than 10 per cent of the presidential votes in those states.
“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?” Wike said.
The minister maintained that supporting Tinubu did not require political actors to abandon their parties or compromise their interests in state and legislative elections.
He urged stakeholders to concentrate on the presidential contest first, after which political parties and their members could turn their attention to state-level battles.
“After the President has been re-elected, we can all go and face elections in our states,” he said.
Wike insisted that he had never promised that the PDP would refrain from presenting candidates for the 2027 governorship, National Assembly and State House of Assembly elections.
“What I said and stand for is that I will mobilise support for the re-election of the President. I never promised anyone that PDP will not field candidates to contest governorship, National Assembly and State House of Assembly elections,” he said.
He added that the rainbow coalition should not be mistaken for an APC structure.
“Most importantly, the rainbow coalition has nothing to do with the APC. Rather, it is our own way of mobilising support across political parties for Mr President, who has done well to deserve a second term,” Wike said.
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