APC State Chapters Reject Wike’s Rainbow Coalition, Demand He Joins Party

Several state chapters of the All Progressives Congress (APC) have rejected the Rainbow Coalition being promoted by FCT Minister Nyesom Wike, with party leaders asking him to formally join the ruling party if he is committed to supporting President Bola Tinubu’s 2027 re-election bid.

The development has intensified the disagreement between Wike and some APC governors over how political support for Tinubu should be organised ahead of the 2027 general elections.

Wike, a member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), has maintained that the Rainbow Coalition is a multi-party platform created to mobilise support for Tinubu’s re-election, rather than an APC structure. He has also argued that supporting Tinubu at the presidential level does not prevent other parties from fielding candidates for governorship and legislative elections.

However, APC governors have taken a different position. The Progressive Governors’ Forum, led by Imo State Governor Hope Uzodimma, has said APC governors would not support political arrangements that could weaken the party or its candidates.

The disagreement became more pronounced after Zamfara State Governor Dauda Lawal told Wike to clarify his political allegiance. Lawal said Wike should either join the APC or leave the Rainbow Coalition, arguing that he could not simultaneously support the APC and candidates of other political parties.

Some APC chapters have indicated that they would welcome Wike if he decides to defect to the party, while others have rejected the coalition altogether because of its cross-party nature.

The dispute therefore centres not only on support for Tinubu’s 2027 presidential bid, but also on which political structure should mobilise that support and how the presidential campaign should relate to governorship and legislative contests.

While Wike insists that the coalition is focused specifically on supporting Tinubu for president, APC leaders have expressed concern that a separate cross-party structure could compete with or weaken the ruling party’s existing political machinery.