Wike: Rainbow Coalition for Tinubu, Not APC

Olawale Ajimotokan in Abuja FCT Minister Nyesom Wike has clarified that the Rainbow Coalition was not established to support the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), but rather as a platform to garner backing for the re-election of President Bola Tinubu in the upcoming election, according to a statement by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communications and Social Media, Lere Olayinka.

Wike emphatically denied that the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) would refrain from fielding candidates in gubernatorial, National Assembly, and State House of Assembly elections. He emphasized that the coalition aimed to unite various political parties in their support for the President, who he believes has earned a second term due to his achievements.

The coalition's purpose, as Wike explained, is to mobilize support for the President, not to assist individual politicians in winning local elections. He urged those experiencing issues in their states to address those problems rather than leveraging Tinubu's reelection to fan the flames of political discord. Wike further stated that he did not engage with the APC prior to the 2023 support given to the President by the G5 (Gombe, Gombe, Gombe, and Gombe - a reference to Gombe State and other political leaders), and that his advocacy for Tinubu's reelection in 2027 is solely for the President, without any intention of endorsing any other political party.

He challenged the notion that the Rainbow Coalition influenced the results of the 2023 elections in several states, questioning the logic behind attributing APC's gains in those elections to a coalition that was not explicitly aligned with the APC. Wike's message was clear: all stakeholders should prioritize the presidential election above all else, and only then should they engage in the subsequent political contests at the state level.