Some leaders and stakeholders of the All Progressives Congress (APC) are reportedly considering alternative political options ahead of the 2027 presidential election amid growing disagreements with Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, over his political activities and the Rainbow Coalition.
Sources within the party, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Wike’s criticism of some APC governors and his insistence that support for President Bola Tinubu did not necessarily extend to APC candidates in other elections had heightened tensions within the ruling party.
The sources specifically mentioned governors in Ogun, Kwara and Imo states as being uncomfortable with Wike’s activities and the potential impact of the Rainbow Coalition on APC candidates in the 2027 elections.
Wike, a chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) serving in the APC-led Federal Government, has been promoting the Rainbow Coalition as a platform for mobilising support for Tinubu’s re-election.
He has, however, maintained that the coalition is separate from the APC and that his support for Tinubu at the presidential level does not amount to an undertaking to support APC candidates in governorship and legislative elections.
The minister recently identified Imo State Governor and Chairman of the Progressive Governors’ Forum, Hope Uzodimma, Kwara State Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq and Ogun State Governor Dapo Abiodun as governors opposed to his political activities. Wike also alleged that some of the opposition to the coalition was linked to political interests surrounding the 2027 elections.
Uzodimma has rejected any suggestion that APC governors would support a political arrangement capable of weakening the party or its candidates.
Speaking after a meeting of APC governors in Abuja, he said the Progressive Governors’ Forum had resolved not to participate in, support or endorse any alliance or political arrangement capable of undermining Tinubu’s re-election, weakening the APC or adversely affecting its candidates at any level.
The position has sharpened the distinction between the two political strategies: while Wike says the Rainbow Coalition is focused on securing support for Tinubu across party lines, APC governors have said their campaign commitment covers the President as well as APC candidates at all levels.
An APC source said the disagreement had prompted discussions among some party stakeholders about alternative political relationships ahead of the election.
“Many of them are looking at alternatives. The governors, including some critical party leaders, are considering the fact that Wike has claimed that he has the power to deliver the President, even more than the number of governors supporting the President.
“If Wike continues along that line, many of them are already considering the option of supporting other candidates against Bola Ahmed Tinubu.”
Another source said some party leaders were concerned that the dispute could widen if the President did not intervene.
“Some of them are looking up to the President to act speedily and nip the matter in the bud. If it is not addressed, some of them may simply watch from afar as the election unfolds, and that could have serious implications for the President in 2027,” the source said.
The source also claimed that the APC National Working Committee might be reluctant to intervene decisively without direction from Tinubu, citing previous difficulties surrounding the party’s handling of political disputes involving Wike.
However, former APC Organising Secretary, Eze Duru, offered a different perspective, saying Tinubu’s political strategy had always involved building support beyond the APC.
Duru said the President would require the backing of APC governors and party members as well as politicians and groups from other political platforms.
He noted that the administration had accommodated politicians from different political backgrounds, including members of the PDP, Labour Party, All Progressives Grand Alliance and Accord Party.
“We have always known that Mr Wike has committed himself to supporting the President, and we will require all such support,” Duru said.
He added that governors and other political stakeholders would be expected to work with the President where they shared the objective of supporting his re-election.
“The President understands the game and will work to unite all of them to work for his victory, and not for anyone else,” he said.
The widening disagreement comes as political realignments gather pace ahead of the 2027 elections, with the Rainbow Coalition and the APC governors advancing different approaches to the presidential, governorship and legislative contests.
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