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Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Nyesom Wike has predicted a fresh wave of political realignment ahead of the 2027 presidential election, saying more politicians across party lines are set to rally behind President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
Wike said the recent meeting between President Tinubu and Osun State Governor-elect, Ademola Adeleke, was a pointer to what he described as the emergence of a broader political alliance capable of reshaping the 2027 contest.
The minister spoke on Friday in Abuja while inspecting ongoing road and infrastructure projects across the FCT.
According to Wike, the political movement around Tinubu should no longer be viewed strictly through the traditional divide between the ruling party and opposition, arguing that politicians from different platforms were increasingly finding common ground in support of the President.
“What happened last night is meeting to rebuild a larger Rainbow Coalition,” Wike said, referring to Adeleke’s engagement with Tinubu.
“He 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.”
Wike, who has remained a prominent supporter of Tinubu despite belonging to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), said the political landscape would become clearer in the weeks ahead.
“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 minister also rejected the notion that there was currently a single, formidable opposition bloc capable of mounting a serious challenge to Tinubu in 2027.
“When you say opposition, I’ve told you I don’t know what you call opposition, as far as there is no opposition now,” he said.
Wike argued that the prolonged crisis within the PDP had weakened its ability to function as a cohesive opposition force.
“Ordinarily, it should have been PDP, but because of the crisis we’ve had, you can’t see a formidable party that you will call the leading opposition party,” he said.
He also dismissed claims by members of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) that their political intervention was responsible for Adeleke’s victory in the Osun governorship election.
“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.
The FCT minister said the development involving Adeleke was evidence that political calculations ahead of 2027 were already shifting, insisting that the President’s camp was gaining strength across party lines.
Asked how former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi might react to his political engagements, Wike said he was more concerned about securing victory than pleasing political opponents.
“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.”
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He further suggested that the 2027 presidential contest could be less difficult for Tinubu’s camp because of the fragmentation within the opposition and the growing cross-party support for the President.
Wike’s political comments came against the backdrop of his inspection of major infrastructure projects in the capital, where he also reaffirmed the FCT Administration’s commitment to meeting its December completion deadlines.
At Life Camp, the minister inspected the N5 Extension road project being constructed by Julius Berger and expressed satisfaction with the pace and quality of work.
He said the project was scheduled for completion and handover in December.
Wike also inspected the N1 Road project being executed by Arab Contractors, describing the quality of construction as high and confirming that it was also expected to be ready for commissioning in December.
The minister subsequently inspected the rehabilitation of the IBB International Golf Club, which is being undertaken following intervention by President Tinubu.
Wike said the facility had become important to members of the diplomatic community, who had raised concerns over its prolonged closure.
He directed that the rehabilitation be completed in time for the club to reopen in December.
“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.
According to Wike, Julius Berger was brought back into the project because it originally constructed the golf facility and therefore possessed the technical knowledge required to restore it to the appropriate standard.
He said physical works were expected to be completed by November, with the official reopening scheduled for December.
Wike explained that the club had been shut following an internal crisis, prompting the appointment of a caretaker committee headed by the President of the Court of Appeal.
He commended the committee for helping to resolve the crisis and creating the conditions for the rehabilitation of the facility.
However, the minister warned that the government would not continue to fund the club’s operations after its reopening.
He said the management would have to generate enough revenue to maintain the facility and sustain its operations.
“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.
Wike assured that the FCT Administration would continue to facilitate payments to contractors to prevent delays, stressing that the December deadlines for the various projects remained sacrosanct.
