Reported by Simon Daniel Yusuph l Journalist at Weng Global
Wike says Tinubu’s re-election is his immediate political priority
Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has reaffirmed his support for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s re-election in 2027, saying his immediate political priority is to mobilise support for the President.
Wike made the statement on Monday, September 21, 2026, after inspecting ongoing infrastructure projects in Abuja, as disagreements continue between supporters of his proposed Rainbow Coalition and governors elected on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
The former Rivers State governor said his position had been clear from the beginning and that his support for Tinubu was focused specifically on the presidential election.
“My concern is that the President will be re-elected for the second term. That is my concern. And I made that known from the onset that I was going to support Mr President with all my might and strength,” Wike said.
Rainbow Coalition is separate from APC, Wike says
Wike has consistently maintained that the Rainbow Coalition is a cross-party platform intended to mobilise support for Tinubu rather than an alternative structure of the APC.
In an earlier statement issued through his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communications and Social Media, Lere Olayinka, Wike said the coalition had no formal connection with the APC.
He also clarified that his support for Tinubu would not prevent the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) from fielding candidates in governorship, National Assembly and State House of Assembly elections in 2027.
According to Wike, his commitment is to the President’s re-election, while other political parties remain free to contest elections at the state and legislative levels.
The distinction has become central to the disagreement surrounding the coalition because Wike remains a PDP member while serving as FCT minister in the APC-led federal government.
APC governors reject arrangements outside the party structure
The controversy intensified after the Progressive Governors Forum, which represents APC governors, rejected political arrangements that could weaken the party or affect its candidates in the 2027 elections.
Imo State Governor Hope Uzodimma, who chairs the forum, said the governors would not support alliances that could undermine APC candidates.
The governors stated that their campaign commitment would remain focused on candidates officially sponsored by the APC at all levels.
The position has been widely linked to concerns surrounding Wike’s Rainbow Coalition, although the governors’ stated position was framed more broadly around political arrangements that could create divided loyalty or competing interests within the party.
Uzodimma said the forum would not participate in or endorse any arrangement capable of undermining Tinubu’s re-election, weakening the APC or adversely affecting the party’s candidates.
Wike says PDP can contest other elections
Wike has rejected the suggestion that supporting Tinubu requires him or other politicians to abandon their respective parties.
He said he had never promised that the PDP would refrain from fielding candidates in other elections.
The minister pointed to the 2023 elections as evidence that Nigerian voters can support different political parties in presidential, legislative and other contests held on the same day.
He cited voting patterns in Imo, Abia, Enugu and Ebonyi states, where the outcomes of presidential and National Assembly elections differed in several constituencies.
Wike has argued that politicians can therefore support Tinubu at the presidential level while backing candidates from other parties in state and legislative contests.
His position, however, differs from the approach publicly outlined by APC governors, who have said their campaign structures will support APC candidates across the ballot.
Political disagreement extends beyond the presidency
The dispute illustrates a broader question ahead of the 2027 elections: whether support for Tinubu can be organised separately from the APC’s own campaign and candidate structures.
For Wike and supporters of the Rainbow Coalition, the platform is intended to bring together politicians from different political backgrounds who support the President’s re-election.
For APC governors, the emphasis is on maintaining the party’s organisational structure and supporting candidates contesting under the APC platform.
The disagreement is therefore not simply about whether individual politicians support Tinubu. It also concerns how that support should be organised and how cross-party alliances should relate to candidates competing against APC candidates in other elections.
The coalition has expanded beyond its initial base
Wike began publicly promoting the Rainbow Coalition as a broader political alignment involving politicians from different parties.
In August, he said the political realignments ahead of the 2027 elections could produce a larger coalition supporting Tinubu.
He also described a meeting between Tinubu and Osun State Governor Ademola Adeleke as part of the development of a broader coalition involving politicians across party lines. Channels Television reported Wike’s comments at the time.
The coalition has since become a subject of debate among political actors, particularly as politicians associated with different parties position themselves ahead of the 2027 elections.
APC concerns over parallel political structures
Some APC groups have also criticised the Rainbow Coalition and argued that it should not be presented as an extension of the ruling party.
The APC Grassroots Governance Organisation said in a September 16 statement that the coalition was not an APC organ or campaign structure and should not be treated as speaking on behalf of APC governors or candidates.
The group’s position reflects concerns within parts of the ruling party about maintaining a clear distinction between cross-party political alliances and the formal APC structure.
Wike, meanwhile, has said he did not approach APC governors to join the coalition. In an interview with ARISE News, he rejected the suggestion that he had sought an alliance with the governors and disputed their characterisation of his political activities.
Why the disagreement matters
The disagreement is significant because the 2027 elections will involve presidential, governorship and legislative contests taking place within the same electoral cycle.
Wike’s approach separates support for Tinubu’s presidential bid from contests at other levels, while the APC governors are emphasising party-wide support for candidates contesting under the APC platform.
The difference could become more consequential as parties select candidates and political actors negotiate alliances across states.
It also highlights the complexity of Nigerian electoral politics, where politicians can belong to one political party while supporting candidates or political interests associated with another party in particular elections.
For voters, the developing situation means that endorsements, coalitions and party affiliations may not always follow the same pattern across presidential, governorship and legislative contests.
Wike’s position remains focused on 2027 presidential election
Wike has repeatedly said that his immediate objective is Tinubu’s re-election and that other electoral contests should be handled according to political realities in individual states.
In his September 15 statement, he urged political stakeholders to concentrate first on the presidential election before turning their attention to state-level contests.
He also argued that political competition should ultimately be determined by grassroots mobilisation and votes cast at polling units.
His latest comments in Abuja reaffirm that position.
At the same time, the APC Governors Forum has made clear that its members intend to support APC candidates throughout the 2027 electoral process.
What happens next
The political dispute is likely to remain part of the broader preparations for the 2027 general elections as parties and political groups develop their campaign structures.
The key developments to watch will include the formal structure of the Rainbow Coalition, the extent of its participation across states, the positions taken by PDP leaders and candidates, and how APC governors coordinate the party’s presidential and down-ballot campaigns.
For now, Wike’s position is that the coalition is focused on supporting Tinubu’s presidential re-election rather than replacing or weakening the APC.
The APC Governors Forum, however, has said its campaign commitment is to APC-sponsored candidates at all levels.
Those positions remain distinct as political parties and alliances prepare for the 2027 elections.
Weng Global – Stories beyond borders
Sources
- Channels Television — Reporting on Wike’s Rainbow Coalition and his support for Tinubu.
- Premium Times — Reporting on Wike’s position on the Rainbow Coalition and the response of APC governors.
- The Punch — Reporting on Wike’s clarification of his support for Tinubu and the APC Governors Forum’s position.
- TheCable — Reporting on the disagreement between Wike and APC governors over the Rainbow Coalition.
- ARISE News — Interview with Nyesom Wike on the Rainbow Coalition.
- Independent Newspaper Nigeria — Reporting on Wike’s September 21, 2026 comments.
- The Times Nigeria — Reporting on Wike’s latest statement concerning Tinubu and the Rainbow Coalition.
