“Only Baby Politicians Are Kicking Against Rainbow Coalition” — Wike Fires Back as Tinubu Drafts Opposition Governors Into 2027 Campaign

Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has dismissed opposition to the Rainbow Coalition backing President Bola Tinubu’s re-election, insisting that the political alliance is permanent despite reported resistance from some All Progressives Congress (APC) governors.

Wike’s declaration comes as Tinubu’s expanded Presidential Campaign Council brings together APC loyalists and influential politicians from other parties ahead of the January 16, 2027 presidential election.

The enlarged council includes Wike, a member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Osun State Governor Ademola Adeleke of the Accord Party, and Anambra State Governor Chukwuma Soludo of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA). Wike will coordinate campaign activities in Rivers State and the Federal Capital Territory, while Adeleke and Soludo will oversee the president’s campaign in Osun and Anambra, respectively.

The appointments have reportedly unsettled some APC stakeholders, who fear that giving opposition politicians prominent roles in the campaign could undermine party loyalists and create friction in states where the ruling party does not control the government. However, sources within the Presidency said Tinubu favoured their inclusion to consolidate support across party lines and bring campaign funding, logistics and grassroots mobilisation under a coordinated structure.

Wike, speaking during his monthly media chat, rejected suggestions that his inclusion in the APC campaign council had triggered a dispute with the party’s governors. He insisted that the coalition was not designed to weaken the APC but to unite its members with supporters of Tinubu from other political parties.

“If you have any problem against me, come out and face Wike. Don’t go under the Rainbow Coalition. For Rainbow Coalition, it has come. It will stay. There is nothing anybody can do about it,” he said.

He also dismissed claims that the arrangement could encourage defections from the ruling party, arguing that politicians did not have to belong to the APC to support Tinubu’s second-term ambition.

“If you see that word, PBAT/APC, it means those who are supporting the president who are not members of the party, together with the party, are working together to achieve that purpose,” Wike said.

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Beyond the coalition controversy, Tinubu’s expanded campaign structure has assigned major responsibilities to several serving and former public officials. Senator Abdulaziz Yari retains his position as Director-General, while former Edo State Governor Adams Oshiomhole will oversee mobilisation as Deputy Director-General. Presidential Chief of Staff Femi Gbajabiamila has been named Deputy Director-General for Administration.

Delta State Governor Sheriff Oborevwori will serve as Director of Finance, while Ogun State Governor Dapo Abiodun and Nigeria Revenue Service Chairman Zacch Adedeji will coordinate fundraising. All 32 APC governors have also been appointed campaign coordinators for their respective states.

Other prominent figures in the council include Works Minister David Umahi, former Kano State Governor Abdullahi Ganduje, former Lagos State Governor Babatunde Fashola, Aviation Minister Festus Keyamo and former Super Eagles captain Joseph Yobo. Solid Minerals Minister Dele Alake will continue as the campaign’s official spokesman.

The council also features several senior political figures as advisers, including former APC National Chairman Bisi Akande, former Ogun State Governor Ibikunle Amosun and Secretary to the Government of the Federation George Akume.

Wike further defended Tinubu’s record, accusing opposition politicians of misrepresenting the president’s performance and maintaining that political disagreements should not be treated as a fight to the finish.

“Politics must not be played as a do-or-die affair,” he said.

With the APC seeking to broaden Tinubu’s support base through a cross-party alliance, the inclusion of Wike, Adeleke and Soludo highlights the campaign’s attempt to bring influential political figures under one umbrella. Whether the strategy will ease resistance within the ruling party while delivering the expected electoral advantage remains a key question as the 2027 contest approaches.