‘Divided loyalty’, APC governors reject Wike-led Rainbow Coalition

The Progressives Governors Forum, representing APC-elected governors, has rejected any political alliances that could undermine President Bola Tinubu's re-election or impact their party's candidates in the 2027 general election. The governors emphasized that they would neither endorse nor participate in any arrangement that could create competing interests within the ruling party.

Imo State Governor, Senator Hope Uzodimma, announced this stance following a closed-door meeting of the governors at the Imo State Governor’s Lodge in Abuja. The situation stems from reported disagreements between FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, and certain APC governors, including Uzodimma and Kwara State Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq.

Wike previously discussed his conflict with the duo, stating that Kwara Governor AbdulRazaq had accused him of supporting politicians against Wike’s preferred candidates in Kwara. In response, AbdulRazaq accused Uzodinma of sponsoring politicians against the governor’s preferred candidates in Kwara. However, AbdulRazaq, who is in his second term, has been a focal point of internal party disputes over his successor.

Various APC gubernatorial aspirants have raised concerns about the party's direction in the state, prompting the G15 group of APC stakeholders to publicly challenge Uzodimma's leadership. Wike, who is a member of the People's Democratic Party (PDP), has been associated with opposition candidates in the 2027 elections in states like Imo and Kwara.

In Imo, Wike supports the PDP candidate, while in Kwara, he backs Senator Saliu Mustapha in the Kwara Central senatorial contest against AbdulRazaq. Mustapha, a former APC member, switched parties after losing the APC ticket for the Kwara Central senatorial district to AbdulRazaq. The communique issued after the meeting revealed that the governors' main goal is to support officially nominated APC candidates at all levels.

The forum stated that they have no intention of backing candidates outside the APC, emphasizing that their candidates are contesting under the party's platform. The APC Governors Forum unanimously decided that its members will not join, support, or promote any alliance or political group that could weaken Tinubu's re-election or harm any of their party's candidates.

The governors pledged to lead efforts in mobilizing support for Tinubu's re-election in their states, focusing on grassroots engagement and aligning their campaign strategies with the administration's Renewed Hope agenda.