Reuben Abati says President Bola Tinubu is facing a difficult political situation as the dispute between FCT Minister Nyesom Wike and APC governors intensifies. The disagreement centres on Wike’s Rainbow Coalition and how political support for Tinubu should be organised ahead of the 2027 election.
Veteran journalist and former presidential spokesman, Reuben Abati, has said President Bola Tinubu is facing a difficult political situation as the disagreement between Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, and governors of the All Progressives Congress (APC) intensifies ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Abati made the observation while discussing the growing political disagreement involving Wike and APC governors over the minister’s Rainbow Coalition, a cross-party political arrangement that Wike says is aimed at supporting Tinubu’s re-election.
The dispute became more pronounced after Imo State Governor and Chairman of the Progressive Governors Forum, Hope Uzodimma, stated that APC governors would not support any political arrangement capable of weakening the party or undermining its candidates ahead of the 2027 elections.
Wike subsequently pushed back against the position of the APC governors, arguing that his support for Tinubu should not mean that he must support every APC candidate contesting elections at the state and legislative levels.
The FCT minister has maintained that the Rainbow Coalition is specifically designed to mobilise support for Tinubu across party lines. His position has created tension with APC governors who want the party’s structures and candidates to remain central to the 2027 election strategy.
The disagreement has particularly brought Wike into confrontation with Uzodimma, who speaks for the APC Governors Forum, as well as other governors whose political interests are tied to APC candidates seeking re-election or new mandates.
Abati’s latest comments come against the background of Wike’s long-running influence in Nigerian politics and his continued membership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), despite serving as a minister in Tinubu’s APC-led federal government.
The political situation is further complicated by Wike’s activities in Rivers State, where the former governor retains a significant political network. The dispute has raised questions about whether a political coalition supporting Tinubu at the presidential level can operate independently of APC structures at the governorship and legislative levels.
Wike has argued that politicians from different parties can work together to support Tinubu without abandoning their individual political interests. APC governors, however, have made clear that they are concerned about arrangements that could weaken the party’s candidates in 2027.
Former Ekiti State Governor Ayo Fayose has also weighed in on the dispute, saying the disagreement should not be viewed solely as a threat to Tinubu’s re-election. Fayose attributed part of the tension to individual political interests and personal ambitions surrounding the 2027 elections.
Wike has continued to defend his position, describing the APC governors as politically lazy and questioning their ability to deliver votes for Tinubu in their respective states. The exchange has widened the disagreement beyond Rivers State and into the broader political calculations surrounding the 2027 presidential election.
For Tinubu, the dispute places competing political interests within his wider support network in the spotlight. Wike remains a federal minister and has publicly declared support for the President, while APC governors are focused on strengthening the ruling party and protecting its candidates across different levels of the 2027 elections.
The disagreement is therefore no longer limited to a personal clash between Wike and individual governors. It has become a broader argument over the relationship between Tinubu’s presidential campaign, APC party structures and political coalitions operating across party lines.
With the 2027 election approaching, the positions taken by Wike, the APC governors and other political actors will continue to shape how support for Tinubu is organised at both the presidential and state levels.