The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Barr Nyesom Wike, has said the political realignment ahead of the 2027 general elections will produce a larger national coalition in support of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
Wike spoke on Friday in Abuja during an inspection of ongoing projects in the Federal Capital Territory, while reacting to the recent visit of Osun State Governor-elect, Ademola Adeleke, to President Tinubu.
The minister said Adeleke’s engagement with the President was an indication of the emergence of what he described as a “larger Rainbow Coalition” in support of Tinubu ahead of the 2027 presidential election.
Wike dismissed the description of the emerging political alignment as an opposition matter, arguing that the current political landscape did not have a clearly defined leading opposition party.
“When you say opposition, I’ve told you I don’t know what you call opposition, as far as there is no opposition now,” Wike said.
According to him, Adeleke, despite securing his ticket for the Osun governorship election on the platform of the Accord Party, remains a member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), adding that the recent political engagement was aimed at strengthening support for Tinubu.
“What happened last night is meeting to rebuild a larger Rainbow Coalition. And he (Adeleke) is supporting Mr President. He’s in a different party; I’m supporting Mr President, and I’m in a different party. So, it’s a larger Rainbow Coalition,” he said.
Wike said more political developments should be expected in the coming weeks, predicting that additional politicians would align with Tinubu.
“And the next few weeks, watch what is going to happen. You will see a larger Rainbow Coalition in this country supporting Mr President,” he said.
The FCT minister also dismissed claims by members of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) that the party and other opposition groups played a decisive role in Adeleke’s electoral victory.
“All those ADC who are talking about ‘they helped Adeleke to win,’ they just wanted to go and harvest where they never planted,” Wike said.
He maintained that Adeleke was now supporting Tinubu, adding that the development had strengthened the President’s position ahead of 2027.
Wike further described the forthcoming election as one that would be easy for the President’s camp, saying the emerging political alignments had significantly altered the opposition landscape.
Reacting to questions on how former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi might perceive his engagement with Adeleke, Wike said their reactions were of little concern to him.
“I have told you when you say ‘leading opposition,’ I’ve told you that there’s no opposition,” he said.
“What you have are people who are just trying to see whether they can be relevant.”
He argued that the PDP, which ordinarily should constitute the major opposition party, had been weakened by its internal crisis.
“Ordinarily, it should have been PDP, but because of the crisis we’ve had, and so you can’t see a formidable party that you will call the leading opposition party,” he said.
Wike said his priority was to ensure victory for his political camp, adding that political contests were not about making opponents comfortable.
Earlier, the minister said the project inspection was part of efforts to ensure that key infrastructure earmarked for completion this year were delivered on schedule.
He inspected the N5 Extension in Life Camp, being executed by Julius Berger, and expressed satisfaction with the progress of work.
Wike said the project was expected to be completed and handed over in December.
He also inspected the N1 Road project being executed by Arab Contractors, describing the quality of work as high and confirming that it was also scheduled for handover in December.
The minister subsequently inspected the IBB International Golf Club, which is undergoing rehabilitation following intervention by President Tinubu.
Wike said the facility had become particularly important to members of the diplomatic community who had complained about the prolonged closure of the club.
“That this golf course must be ready and be reopened by December. So we are giving it to Julius Berger to ensure that everything is done. And by December this year, the golf course will be reopened,” he said.
He explained that Julius Berger was re-engaged because the company originally constructed the facility and had the requisite knowledge of its design and standards.
According to him, physical completion is expected by November, allowing the club to reopen officially in December.
The minister said the golf club was shut following an internal crisis, which led to the appointment of a caretaker committee headed by the President of the Court of Appeal.
He commended the committee for its efforts in resolving the crisis and facilitating the rehabilitation of the facility.
Wike, however, said the government would not continue to bankroll the club after its reopening.
He said the management must generate sufficient revenue to sustain its operations and maintenance without relying on public funds.
“I would believe, this time around, that when this is done, they should be able to raise funds by themselves to run this place. The government should not use public funds to come back to do it,” he said.
The minister assured that the FCT Administration would continue to facilitate payments to the contractor to keep the rehabilitation on schedule, stressing that the December reopening deadline remained firm.
