FCT Minister says Adeleke’s meeting with Tinubu signals bigger political realignment ahead of 2027
Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has predicted a much bigger political coalition in support of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu ahead of the 2027 general elections, saying recent political movements show that the country’s political landscape is changing rapidly.
Wike made the statement on Friday in Abuja while speaking with journalists during an inspection of ongoing projects in the Federal Capital Territory.
The former Rivers State governor was reacting to the recent visit of Osun State Governor-elect, Ademola Adeleke, to President Tinubu.
According to Wike, the meeting between Adeleke and the President should not be viewed as an ordinary political visit. He described it as part of a wider political realignment that could produce what he called a “larger Rainbow Coalition” backing Tinubu ahead of the 2027 presidential election.
Wike said the old political lines were becoming difficult to maintain, with politicians belonging to different parties increasingly working together around the President.
He dismissed the idea that there is currently a clearly defined leading opposition force in Nigeria, arguing that the crisis within the Peoples Democratic Party has weakened its position as the main opposition party.
“When you say opposition, I’ve told you I don’t know what you call opposition, as far as there is no opposition now,” Wike said.
The minister pointed to Adeleke’s political position as an example of the changing landscape.
Adeleke won the recent Osun governorship election under the Accord Party, but Wike noted that the governor-elect remains associated with the PDP.
According to him, Adeleke’s political engagement with Tinubu shows that politicians can belong to different parties while still supporting the President.
“What happened last night is meeting to rebuild a larger Rainbow Coalition,” Wike said.
“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 went further, warning Nigerians to expect more political movements 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 statement is likely to further fuel the political debate surrounding the 2027 presidential election, particularly as politicians from different parties continue to make moves that do not always follow traditional party lines.
Wike also took a swipe at members of the African Democratic Congress who have claimed that the party and other opposition forces played an important role in Adeleke’s victory in Osun State.
The FCT Minister rejected such claims, saying those politicians were attempting to take credit for a victory they did not produce.
“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.
He maintained that Adeleke’s recent engagement with Tinubu had changed the political calculation ahead of 2027.
Wike also expressed confidence in the chances of the President’s political camp, describing the forthcoming presidential contest as one that could be easier for Tinubu because of the emerging alliances.
The minister was equally dismissive of concerns about how opposition figures such as former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi might react to the growing relationship between Adeleke and Tinubu.
According to Wike, their reactions were not his concern.
“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.”
Wike argued that the PDP should ordinarily have been the strongest opposition party in the country but has been weakened by its internal crisis.
“Ordinarily, it should have been PDP, but because of the crisis we’ve had, and so you can’t see a formidable party that you will call the leading opposition party,” he said.
His comments come at a time when political alignments ahead of 2027 are becoming increasingly fluid, with politicians crossing traditional political boundaries and holding discussions with actors outside their immediate party structures.
While Wike focused heavily on politics, he was in Abuja primarily to inspect major infrastructure projects being executed by the FCT Administration.
The minister inspected the N5 Extension in Life Camp, being constructed by Julius Berger, and expressed satisfaction with the progress of work.
He said the project was expected to be completed and handed over in December.
Wike also inspected the N1 Road project being executed by Arab Contractors.
He praised the quality of the work and said the project was also expected to be ready for handover in December.
The minister later visited the IBB International Golf Club, which is undergoing rehabilitation following the intervention of President Tinubu.
Wike said the rehabilitation of the golf club had become important, particularly because members of the diplomatic community had raised concerns about its prolonged closure.
He said the facility must be reopened by 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,” Wike said.
According to him, physical work is expected to be completed by November, giving the authorities time to prepare the facility for its official reopening in December.
Wike explained that Julius Berger was brought back into the project because the company originally constructed the facility and was familiar with its design and technical requirements.
The golf club was reportedly shut following an internal crisis, after which a caretaker committee headed by the President of the Court of Appeal was appointed.
Wike commended the committee for helping to resolve the crisis and creating the conditions for rehabilitation to proceed.
However, the minister warned that the government would not continue to fund the facility after it reopens.
He said the management of the golf club must generate enough revenue to maintain its operations without depending on government funds.
“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 also assured that the FCT Administration would continue to support the contractors through timely payments so that the projects would remain on schedule.
But beyond the roads and golf club, it was his political comments that dominated attention.
His prediction of a “larger Rainbow Coalition” suggests that the political battle ahead of 2027 may not simply be a straightforward contest between parties.
Instead, the coming months could witness more alliances, negotiations and political movements involving politicians who may remain members of different political parties while supporting the same presidential candidate.
For Tinubu’s camp, such movements could strengthen the President’s political base.
For the opposition, however, Wike’s comments present a direct challenge to those seeking to build a strong alternative ahead of 2027.
The biggest question now is whether the political realignment being predicted by Wike will actually translate into a formidable nationwide structure or whether it will remain a collection of individual political alliances.
With 2027 approaching, the political temperature is already rising.
And if Wike’s prediction becomes reality, Nigeria could be heading towards an election in which party labels may matter less than the political alliances formed before voters eventually go to the polls.
