APC Governors Consider Alliance with Atiku to Challenge Wike

Yusuf Musa, a supporter of the Tinubu Continuity Project, claims some unhappy governors from the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) are discussing a possible alliance with Atiku Abubakar, the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC). This is ahead of the 2027 elections.

Mr Musa, who is an APC member and part of the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF), explained that this proposed alliance is meant to counter the Rainbow Coalition that Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, is promoting. Wike’s coalition is set up as a campaign structure for President Bola Tinubu’s re-election.

He shared this information in a statement sent to PREMIUM TIMES on Wednesday.

While he did not name the governors involved, Mr Musa stated that they are not planning to leave the APC. Instead, they are looking into joining forces with Mr Atiku.

“The APC governors think they should also be free to explore other political options if Wike can bring together politicians from different parties against them while still supporting Tinubu at the presidential level,” he said.

Mr Musa, a former board member of the News Agency of Nigeria, mentioned that the governors might go ahead with this alliance if President Tinubu and the APC leaders do not step in to resolve the issues around the coalition. He said this dispute could threaten their political future.

“If President Tinubu and the APC leadership cannot rein in Wike, then what stops the governors whose political future is being threatened from building alternative political relationships outside the ruling party?” he asked.

Mr Musa’s comments about the governors’ potential alliance with Atiku are similar to what he said on TVC’s Breakfast Show on Monday. He warned that Wike’s refusal to back down on the coalition could lead to a serious crisis within the ruling party ahead of the elections.

“If he doesn’t retrace his steps and allow us to campaign in peace, we are going to make this country very hot for him,” he said on TVC’s Breakfast show.

Mr Wike, who is part of the opposition PDP but serving in the APC-led federal government, has been having issues with APC governors over his Rainbow Coalition. He claims it is meant to rally support for President Tinubu’s re-election.

The coalition started in Rivers State, where Mr Wike was governor, and has since spread to other parts of the country.

But the APC governors have rejected the coalition, saying it could harm the party and its candidates ahead of the 2027 elections.

The governors and other APC leaders have accused Mr Wike of using the coalition to support politicians who did not win the party’s primaries and are now running on the PDP platform.

The APC Governors Forum, led by Imo State Governor Hope Uzodimma, has turned down the coalition. They stated they will not back any political arrangement that could hurt the party and its candidates in the 2027 elections.

On the other hand, Mr Wike has said the governors oppose the coalition because they fear losing their elections. He has also criticized how they are performing in their states.

He specifically named Governors Uzodimma, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq of Kwara State, and Dapo Abiodun of Ogun State as opponents of the coalition, accusing them of acting out of “selfish reasons.”

The PDP, Mr Wike’s party, has also entered the discussion, supporting his efforts to mobilize for President Tinubu’s re-election. This is despite the party's decision to present Sandy Onor as its presidential candidate for the 2027 election.

However, the APC South-East caucus and other groups within the party have rejected the coalition. They want Mr Wike to apologize to the party’s governors for his comments about their political abilities and their opposition to his Rainbow Coalition.

In the middle of this disagreement, the APC national leadership has not publicly stated whether it supports Mr Wike’s coalition. This leaves many wondering how the party will handle the conflict between the minister and the governors.

Mr Musa said the governors believe that President Tinubu will win the 2027 presidential election, but they worry that the coalition could weaken their campaign efforts if the president has indeed given up nine states to Mr Wike’s group.

“The governors are not worried that Tinubu will not win his re-election. However, their fears are based on Wike’s claims that the President has already ceded nine states to his coalition in the governorship and legislative elections.

“Such claims might seem like mere political boasting, but no one should take them lightly because, in politics, anything can happen, especially concerning elections,” he stated.

Mr Wike has previously denied that Mr Tinubu ceded nine states to his coalition for the governorship, National Assembly, and state assembly elections. He has insisted that the president is aware of his efforts to form the coalition and its goals.

But Mr Musa argued that the governors know Mr Tinubu will not be running for another term after 2027. They feel he could afford to give up some states to the coalition.

“The governors are aware that Tinubu will not be seeking another election after 2027 and that it would cost him nothing to give up some states, as Wike claimed,” he said.

He predicted that politicians linked with the coalition could switch to the APC after winning governorship and legislative elections in their states.

Mr Musa pointed to the defections of governors from Bayelsa, Delta, Akwa Ibom, Taraba, Enugu, Adamawa, Kano, and Rivers states from opposition parties to the APC as examples of such political shifts.

“With the changing nature of Nigerian politics, it would not be hard for these Wike-aligned coalition politicians to join the APC after winning the 2027 governorship and legislative elections in their states.

“We have seen many defections by opposition governors to the ruling APC in Nigeria’s recent political history, so the threats are real. Remember that the current governors of Bayelsa, Delta, Akwa Ibom, Taraba, Enugu, Adamawa, Kano, and Rivers all moved from opposition to the APC,” he said.

When asked for a comment, Paul Ibe, Atiku’s spokesperson, refused to speak.