State chairmen of the ruling All Progressives Congress have called on the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, to clarify his political allegiance by formally joining the party.
The party leaders argued that Wike could not publicly campaign for President Bola Tinubu’s re-election in 2027 while retaining his membership of the Peoples Democratic Party.
Their positions followed renewed discussions surrounding Wike’s Rainbow Coalition, a political arrangement associated with efforts to support Tinubu’s presidential bid while allowing other political parties to field candidates in governorship and legislative elections.
Wike, a former Rivers State governor who governed under the PDP, was appointed FCT minister by Tinubu following the 2023 presidential election. Although he has repeatedly expressed support for Tinubu’s bid for a second term in 2027, he has yet to formally resign from the PDP.
The situation has produced different reactions within the APC. While some party leaders have welcomed Wike’s support for Tinubu, others contend that his continued membership of the PDP creates uncertainty about his political position.
Zamfara State Governor Dauda Lawal recently conveyed the position of several APC governors, urging Wike to choose between joining the ruling party and continuing with the coalition.
Lawal made the comments during an appearance on Channels Television’s Inside Sources on the sidelines of the 81st United Nations General Assembly in New York.
“Our message is very, very clear: Be on one side. You can’t be on two sides. If you’re in APC, please come out and support APC. Not you’re supporting APC here, and you’re supporting other political parties somewhere else. It doesn’t make sense. It’s not done anywhere,” he said.
He added, “And that is why we maintain our stand, and it is very clear—the message is very clear. He can speak, he can say whatever he wants to say, but our position has been very, very clear: APC all the way from head to toe.”
Asked whether the governors wanted Wike to join the APC, Lawal replied, “Exactly. What’s the essence?”
The governor further disclosed that he planned to discuss the issue with Tinubu.
“It’s something that I will take up with the President when he comes back. So, let there be a very, very clear line where this guy belongs to. It’s either he’s in APC or he’s out. It’s simple. And I go with my brothers, the governors,” Lawal said.
Several APC state chapters have expressed similar views, although the strength of their objections to the coalition differs from state to state.
In Imo State, APC Publicity Secretary Jones Onwuasoanya said Wike should formally identify with the ruling party if his backing for Tinubu was genuine.
“Decency demands that an individual who claims so much allegiance to the philosophies and programmes of a political party should fully align with that political party, rather than playing hide and seek with his loyalty to the party,” he said.
Onwuasoanya added, “If Wike is sincere about his support for President Tinubu, then he should join the APC and begin to campaign for our party across all positions rather than being selective.”
He also rejected the Rainbow Coalition as a political force in Imo.
“As long as the All Progressives Congress in Imo State is concerned, there is nothing like a Rainbow Coalition or whatever it might be called. The APC is the only viable political platform in Imo State and Imolites are fully aligned with us,” he said.
Gombe APC Publicity Secretary Murtala Usman similarly encouraged Wike to complete his political alignment with the ruling party.
“My opinion is the same as the people who are advising him to join APC because APC doesn’t need any rainbow coalition for now,” Usman said.
He argued that the coalition could create complications in states where APC members were already contesting for political influence.
“So Wike should switch to APC completely. Since he is doing the work of APC, let him be a full member, not a partial member,” he said.
In Ondo State, APC Secretary Alex Kalejaiye opposed an arrangement that would back Tinubu for president while supporting candidates from other parties in legislative and state elections.
“We are disturbed that the coalition would only support President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, in the general elections, but field candidates for other positions,” Kalejaiye said.
He said the APC would campaign for all its candidates across the ballot.
“To us in Ondo State, support for the candidates of the ruling party must be total; our party is committed to mobilising votes for the President, three senatorial, nine representatives, and 26 House of Assembly candidates. That is not negotiable,” he said.
Kalejaiye called on Wike to bring his political structures into the APC.
“The APC could therefore appeal to Barr. Nyesom Wike, the leader of the coalition, to collapse his structures into the ruling party, so we could present a common front during the elections,” he stated.
The APC in Jigawa adopted a more conciliatory position. The state party’s Publicity Secretary, Bashir Kundu, said Wike would be welcomed if he chose to defect.
“We in the Jigawa APC welcome the contribution Wike is making in promoting the President and APC candidate for the 2027 election, Bola Tinubu. We will certainly welcome Nyesom Wike if he decides to join our party, the APC,” Kundu said.
He pointed out that the APC itself was formed through the merger of political parties, arguing that Wike’s political background would therefore not constitute a barrier to his membership.
Within the Benue APC, however, views on the matter remain divided. James Orgunga, an organising secretary of one faction, commended Wike’s backing for Tinubu but said he would prefer the minister to formally join the APC.
“Wike has joined APC already, because he is working for the president; we appreciate that, but as a core party man, anyone working for the success of a candidate in my party should be praised,” Orgunga said.
“But I do not subscribe to a rainbow coalition and am of the opinion that Wike join our party.”
Daniel Ihomun, a spokesman for another faction, took a different position.
“He should not join APC; he should remain where he is because he has helped to destroy PDP for us,” Ihomun said.
In Rivers State, Wike’s home state, an APC faction led by Emeka Beke backed the position of the Progressive Governors Forum.
The faction’s Publicity Secretary, Darlington Nwauju, said Wike could not retain his PDP membership while simultaneously seeking to influence the political structure of the APC.
“You cannot confuse the electorate by thinking that you can order them into voting for candidate A in party A and candidate B in party B on the same election day,” Nwauju said.
He added, “My belief is that the Progressive Governors Forum is in the right with the advisory that they have issued. Join the APC or leave her alone. You cannot stand [and] use your association with the APC to rebuild the PDP.”
Anambra APC chairman Senator Emmanuel Anosike also criticised Wike’s involvement in the affairs of the ruling party.
“It amounts to an insult to the integrity and sensibility of the APC and its governors for Wike to make such comments,” Anosike said.
He added, “The minister is not a member of the party, hence should stop meddling in the internal affairs of the party.”
Kwara APC chairman Sunday Fagbemi questioned the practicality of a coalition that would support presidential and legislative candidates from different political parties on the same ballot.
“What is the level of enlightenment of Nigerian voters? How do you explain to someone that, out of the five elections, at least three—the presidential, senatorial and House of Representatives elections—will be conducted on the same day?” Fagbemi asked.
He continued, “Will you stand by the ballot box and tell a voter to vote for one party for President and another party for Senate?”
Plateau APC chairman Rufus Bature said the state chapter did not recognise the Rainbow Coalition but would not prevent Wike from becoming an APC member.
“If he wants to join the APC, he is free to do that because we don’t stop people from joining our party. But he cannot be APC in the morning and PDP in the night. We won’t allow that,” Bature said.
Nasarawa APC Publicity Secretary Augustine Ogaba also welcomed Wike’s support for Tinubu but said the party would prefer him to become a member.
“As APC members, we do not approve of any coalition that is not recognised or supported by our party’s leadership,” Ogaba said.
“The FCT minister has set up his own coalition but decided to support Mr President’s re-election in 2027. I will tell you that we quite appreciate that, but we will be happier if he joins our party,” he added.
Some other APC chapters have refrained from taking a definite position on the issue.
Osun APC spokesman Kola Olabisi said the matter should be left to the party’s national leadership.
“The decision on whether Wike should join APC or not is beyond the state level. It will be decided at the highest level of the party. It is the national level of the party that has the final say on that,” Olabisi said.
Delta APC chairman Solomon Arenyeka likewise said the state chapter was waiting for direction from the national leadership.
“It is the national that makes such policy statements, and when they make a statement it goes down the line. The national has not made a policy statement on it,” he said.
In Bayelsa, APC chieftain Doubara Joseph argued that Wike should join the ruling party if his support for Tinubu was genuine.
“If Wike is actually working for President Tinubu and believes in the President’s leadership, then the straightforward thing for him to do is to join the APC. You cannot claim to be working for the President while simultaneously sustaining another political platform,” Joseph said.
In Sokoto, Niger and Bauchi, party officials either declined to adopt a broader position or said their chapters had no formal relationship with the coalition.
Sokoto APC chairman Haruna Adiya said, “We have no issues with the Rainbow Coalition. We have no member of the coalition in Sokoto State.”
Niger APC spokesman Musa Sarkin-Kaji said, “The APC in Niger State has no business with Wike, although we appreciate his relationship with our party. And you know we are in a democracy, and everyone has the freedom of association.”
Bauchi APC spokesman Shehu Dauda said the party did not support divided loyalty.
“We don’t believe in someone in another party claiming to be with us, or our party members claiming not to support any of our candidates. Whoever is with the APC should be with it and not divide their loyalty,” he said.
Wike has rejected the suggestion that his coalition constitutes an APC structure. Through his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communications and Social Media, Lere Olayinka, he has maintained that the arrangement is specifically aimed at supporting Tinubu’s presidential re-election and does not stop other parties from contesting governorship and legislative positions.
Wike has also referred to events preceding the 2023 presidential election, when he and other members of the G5 supported Tinubu without formally quitting the PDP.
