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A member of the House of Representatives, Abdulmumin Jibrin, has said the emerging Rainbow Coalition involving Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, should not be seen as a threat to President Bola Tinubu ahead of the 2027 presidential election.
Jibrin said the political alliance could instead strengthen Tinubu’s chances by helping the president broaden his support base beyond the All Progressives Congress (APC).
The lawmaker made the remarks during an appearance on TVC News’ Sunday Politics, while reacting to concerns raised by the Progressive Governors Forum over political arrangements that could affect the APC and its candidates in 2027.
The governors had resolved that their members would not support or participate in any alliance capable of weakening the APC, hurting its candidates or undermining Tinubu’s re-election bid.
Jibrin, however, urged the governors to engage Wike through dialogue rather than confront him, arguing that the FCT minister remains a significant political force.
“For me, the Rainbow Coalition has no negative effect on the President,” he said. “If the governors perceive that the Rainbow Coalition will affect them, what you need to do is negotiate with Wike.”
He said the governors’ concerns about the possible effect of the coalition on their elections amounted to an acknowledgement of Wike’s political influence.
“If you have somebody and you are conceding that this person has the capacity to even produce members of the House of Representatives, if the Rainbow Coalition goes ahead and even affects the governorship election, what do you do? Is it to fight him or is it to negotiate with him?” Jibrin asked.
The lawmaker described Wike as a political “deal maker” whose influence could be useful to Tinubu, particularly because of his ability to build relationships across party lines.
“This is a point where we need more Wikes. I tell you something: do you know that if Wike were not to be working with APC today, he would have been able to form the same Rainbow Coalition for the opposition?” he said.
Jibrin argued that Wike’s absence from the APC could actually give him greater flexibility to mobilise political support for Tinubu through alliances outside the ruling party.
“The opposition today, what they are missing, their missing link is a Wike. So it’s not all the time you have a Wike. And I keep telling people, we need more Wikes in APC,” he added.
He also opposed the idea of bringing Wike formally into the APC, saying the minister could be more useful to the party while operating outside its formal structure.
“If today you ask me, should Wike come into APC, I will say no. Because APC needs him better outside than inside APC,” Jibrin said.
Responding to descriptions of Wike as a “destroyer”, Jibrin said political relationships are often shaped by interests and negotiations rather than permanent alliances.
“Politics is about interest,” he said. “His interest was affected and he believes that his interest will be protected or better served in alliance. He is just working in alliance with APC.”
Jibrin therefore urged APC governors to consider Wike’s wider political network and engage him rather than treating the Rainbow Coalition as an adversarial project ahead of the 2027 elections.
