Wike Says Tinubu's 2027 Re-election Is His Sole Political Focus

Nyesom Wike, the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, has intensified his campaign on behalf of President Bola Tinubu’s bid for a second term, declaring that ensuring the president’s re-election in 2027 is the single political objective that consumes him. Speaking on Monday at town hall meetings with the Rumueme and Apara kingdoms in Obio-Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State, Wike dismissed the African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential ticket of Atiku Abubakar and former Rivers State Governor Rotimi Amaechi as a “joint ticket of corruption.” He said the opposition alliance lacks viability and will struggle to win the constitutionally required 25 percent of the vote in Rivers State. Wike aimed much of his criticism at Atiku over recent comments urging voters to accept financial inducements from the ruling party, questioning the former vice president’s anti-corruption credentials. “When I saw Atiku on television yesterday, asking Nigerians to take any money given to them by people from the party in power, that it will be stolen money, I said haa, Atiku is now an apostle of anti-corruption?” Wike said. “The same Atiku that his boss described as corrupt and that one of his major regrets is making him his Vice President is talking.” Emphasizing his commitment to the current administration, Wike described himself as fully absorbed in the president’s political future. He pointed to federal appointments and development projects extended to Rivers State as justification for broad local support. “Each day I sleep, I am thinking about the president’s reelection. When I am eating, I think about the president’s reelection. Everything I am doing now is about the president’s reelection,” Wike declared, adding that he expects the president’s upcoming electoral campaign to be smoother than the 2023 contest. The FCT minister also dismissed other opposition figures, including Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) presidential candidate Peter Obi, as unelectable.