The Federal Capital Territory minister, Nyesom Wike, has reiterated his unwavering support for the re-election bid of President Bola Tinubu, stating that the political alliance he is leading is not going to bar the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) from nominating candidates in all parliamentary and governorship elections.
In a statement released on Tuesday via his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communications and Social Media, Lere Olayinka, the FCT minister responded to the recent pressure from APC governors, who were not happy about his political alliances.
Wike said that leaders who face political differences in their states should solve the problems themselves and not take advantage of the president’s presidential election to rouse sentiments.
Responding to the fears expressed by the APC governors concerning parallel structures, Wike pointed out that the Rainbow Coalition has nothing to do with the ruling party and instead stands as a platform bringing together people who wish to campaign for Tinubu’s re-election from outside the APC party.
Referencing the behaviour of voters during the 2023 general election, the minister said that voters often use their ballots differently depending on circumstances.
Illustrating with examples of Imo, Ebonyi, Abia, and Enugu, where the APC had parliamentary seats despite the low performance of the president in terms of votes in these particular states, Wike stated that voters can successfully use multi-party ballots.
Returning to his strategy, Wike reiterated that he mainly cares about securing victory for Tinubu and suggested that political battle at the state level could be fought after the presidential campaign had been won.
Wike also stated that political success should be based on intensive groundwork conducted at the polling unit level
