FCT Minister Nyesom Wike has clarified that his decision to support President Bola Tinubu’s re-election bid in 2027 does not amount to an endorsement of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in other elections.
Wike said his political commitment was limited to Tinubu’s presidential campaign, insisting that the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) remained free to field candidates for governorship, National Assembly and State House of Assembly elections.
The minister made the clarification in a statement issued through his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communications and Social Media, Lere Olayinka, as political parties intensify preparations for the 2027 elections.
According to Wike, the emerging “rainbow coalition” should not be interpreted as a merger with the APC. Rather, he described it as an arrangement involving politicians from different parties who are willing to mobilise support for Tinubu’s second-term bid.
Wike recalled that members of the G5 supported Tinubu in the 2023 presidential election without entering into an agreement with the APC to abandon their respective political parties.
He maintained that the same principle would apply in 2027, stressing that supporting a presidential candidate does not automatically translate into supporting the candidate’s party in every other contest.
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.
The former Rivers State governor also warned politicians against assuming that presidential alliances would determine the outcome of state-level elections, stressing that political calculations vary from one location to another.
He cited the 2023 elections in the Southeast, where voters backed different parties for presidential and legislative positions, as evidence that Nigerians could make separate choices during the same election cycle.
Wike further challenged politicians who believe previous electoral performances automatically determine future victories, arguing that success in 2027 would depend largely on grassroots mobilisation and support at polling units.
He urged political actors to concentrate on securing Tinubu’s re-election first, saying the various political battles at the state level could be addressed separately.
