ENUGU, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA)- FCT Minister Nyesom Wike has challenged Imo State Governor Hope Uzodimma to explain the All Progressives Congress (APC’s) poor showing in the state’s 2023 presidential election, insisting that the Rainbow Coalition is not responsible for the party’s performance in the state.
Wike’s response followed the position of the Progressive Governors Forum, led by Uzodimma, that APC governors would not support political arrangements involving candidates outside the ruling party ahead of the 2027 elections.
According to Vanguard, the FCT minister, in a statement issued on Tuesday by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communications and Social Media, Lere Olayinka, said his focus was on mobilising votes for President Bola Tinubu’s re-election and not determining who wins governorship, National Assembly or state assembly elections.
He argued that the voting pattern in the 2023 elections had already shown that Nigerians could vote for different parties in presidential and legislative contests without being confused.
READ ALSO 2027: Wike’s Coalition Will Deliver Tinubu, Says Nwuche
Wike specifically questioned the APC’s performance in Imo, where the party won two senatorial seats in 2023 but recorded less than 15 per cent in the presidential election 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 with that of the President and APC had less than 15 percent in the presidential election? Was it Rainbow Coalition? Were the voters confused?”
He extended the argument to the South-East, pointing to the APC’s victories in National Assembly elections in Ebonyi, Abia and Enugu despite the President recording less than 10 per cent of the presidential votes in those states.
“Was it Rainbow Coalition that also made APC to win National Assembly elections in Ebonyi, Abia and Enugu states where the President did not have ten percent of the votes?”
READ ALSO Rivers 2027: Wike Denies Backing Candidate, Distances Coalition From Fubara
According to Wike, the same voting pattern could occur in 2027 if voters decide to support Tinubu at the presidential level while backing other parties for state and legislative positions.
“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 maintained that the Rainbow Coalition was not an APC structure and should not be interpreted as an attempt to create a parallel organisation within the ruling party.
He said the coalition was made up of people and political interests from different parties who supported what he described as Tinubu’s performance and wanted him re-elected.
“Most importantly, Rainbow Coalition has nothing to do with the APC. Rather, it is own way of mobilising support across political parties for Mr President, who has done well to deserve a second term,” he said.
READ ALSO Fubara Backs Tinubu, Wike’s Rainbow Coalition Ahead 2027, Says War Is Over
Wike also recalled that he and other members of the G5 did not negotiate with the APC before supporting Tinubu in the 2023 presidential election.
He said his present objective was similarly limited to the presidential contest.
“I never met with the APC before myself and other members of the G5 supported the President in 2023, and that for 2027, his support is for the president only,” he said.
The minister further argued that political contests should be determined at the polling-unit level, rather than through assumptions about which party or candidate should automatically benefit from another candidate’s support.
He said he would not take responsibility for helping politicians secure victories in their respective states.
READ ALSO Coalition Politics: You’re Repeating Past Mistakes — Wike Blasts Atiku Over 2027 Ambitions
“Politics is local and those having problems in their States should resolve them instead of using the reelection of the President to whip up sentiments,” Wike said.
He also dismissed the idea that his political activities amounted to a promise that the PDP would not field candidates in the 2027 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 States House of Assembly elections.”
Wike urged political stakeholders to prioritise the presidential election, saying other electoral contests could be addressed after Tinubu’s re-election.
“After the President must have been reelected, we can all go and face elections in our states.”