South-East APC Leaders Back Governors in Dispute With Wike Over 2027 Politics

APC leaders in the South-East have expressed support for the party's governors amid an escalating disagreement with FCT Minister Nyesom Wike over political alliances ahead of the 2027 elections.

In a statement signed by APC National Vice Chairman for the South-East Ijeomah Arodiogbu and the party chairmen in Abia, Anambra, Ebonyi, Enugu and Imo, the leaders criticised Wike's recent comments about APC governors and rejected his Rainbow Coalition as a political arrangement that could challenge the party's structures.

The development comes after the Progressive Governors Forum, led by Imo State Governor Hope Uzodimma, said APC governors would support the party's candidates and would not endorse arrangements capable of weakening the APC ahead of 2027.

South-East APC leaders have backed the position of the Progressive Governors Forum in its growing disagreement with Wike.

According to the statement reported by PUNCH on September 17, the South-East party leaders described Wike's recent criticism of APC governors as unacceptable and argued that elected governors should be allowed to exercise their political responsibilities without interference.

The leaders specifically defended governors who they said had demonstrated electoral strength and delivered development in their respective states.

They also accused Wike of seeking to influence the political fortunes of APC governors ahead of the 2027 elections. That is an allegation from the South-East APC leadership and is not an independently established fact.

The leaders called on the FCT minister to withdraw what they described as attacks on the governors and urged greater party discipline and cooperation.

They also rejected what they called the "Rainbow Coalition" in the South-East and said the APC would defend its political structures in the region.

The statement further said South-East APC members would support the party's candidates in the 2027 presidential, governorship and legislative elections.

The disagreement illustrates a broader question facing the APC and its allies before the 2027 elections: whether politicians can support President Bola Tinubu's re-election while simultaneously backing candidates from different political parties in governorship and legislative contests.

Wike has maintained that his Rainbow Coalition is primarily designed to mobilise support for Tinubu's presidential re-election. He has also said the coalition is not an APC structure and that his support for Tinubu does not require him to support APC candidates in every other election.

APC governors, however, have taken a different position. Following a meeting in Abuja, Uzodimma said the governors would not participate in or endorse political arrangements capable of weakening the party or harming its candidates at any level.

The disagreement therefore concerns not only presidential politics but also the relationship between national alliances and the competition for governorship and legislative seats.

Key Questions

What is the dispute between Wike and the APC governors about?

At the centre of the disagreement is Wike's Rainbow Coalition and how it relates to the 2027 elections.

Wike says the coalition is intended to bring together politicians from different parties who support Tinubu's presidential bid.

The APC governors have said they will support the party's candidates and will not endorse arrangements that could undermine the APC or its candidates.

Is Wike saying he has joined the APC?

No.

Wike remains a prominent member of the Peoples Democratic Party and has repeatedly distinguished his support for Tinubu from membership of the APC.

In a recent interview, he said he had never approached APC governors to join his coalition and argued that supporting Tinubu did not require politicians to abandon their parties.

What is the Rainbow Coalition?

Wike has described the Rainbow Coalition as a cross-party political platform intended to mobilise support for Tinubu's 2027 presidential re-election.

According to Wike, the coalition is separate from the APC and is not intended to prevent other political parties from fielding candidates for governorship or legislative positions.

Why are APC governors concerned?

The governors' stated concern is that alternative political arrangements could weaken the APC's organisational structure or affect the party's candidates during the 2027 elections.

Uzodimma said the Progressive Governors Forum would not support arrangements capable of undermining Tinubu's re-election, weakening the APC or adversely affecting the party's candidates.

What is the South-East APC position?

The South-East APC leaders quoted by PUNCH say they support the APC governors and intend to back the party's candidates in the 2027 elections.

They also rejected the Rainbow Coalition in the region and criticised Wike's recent comments about APC governors.

Those statements represent the position of the South-East APC leadership and should not be interpreted as representing every politician or voter in the South-East.

The disagreement has developed over several days.

On September 14, the Progressive Governors Forum, chaired by Uzodimma, announced that APC governors would not support political alliances that could weaken the party or affect its candidates.

Wike responded by defending his coalition and saying its purpose was to support Tinubu rather than the APC as an organisation.

He later said President Tinubu was aware of his political activities and argued that APC governors had no authority over his political decisions because he was not an APC member.

The dispute has since attracted reactions from other APC-linked groups. The APC Grassroots Governance Organisation, for example, separately criticised the Rainbow Coalition and defended Uzodimma's position.

The latest South-East APC statement adds another layer to the disagreement by placing the party's regional leadership behind the APC governors.

The immediate issue is whether the disagreement remains a public exchange between political actors or develops into a broader organisational conflict as parties prepare for the 2027 elections.

The APC governors have already stated their intention to support the party's candidates at different levels, while Wike maintains that his coalition can support Tinubu for president while allowing other parties to contest governorship and legislative elections.

The positions remain different, and no agreement between the two sides has been announced.

The South-East APC leadership has now publicly aligned itself with the party's governors in the dispute over Wike's Rainbow Coalition.

The key issue ahead of 2027 is how support for a presidential candidate will interact with competition among political parties for governorship and legislative seats. For now, APC governors and Wike are maintaining different positions on that question.