Mounting Pressure on President Tinubu to Reconsider Alliance with Wike as Presidency Insiders Reveal Growing Rift Over FCT Minister’s Conduct

…says “it is time to do away with Wike.”

Indications have emerged that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, is facing mounting pressure from some of his closest political allies and long-time associates to review his relationship with the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike.

Multiple presidency sources told Signal.ng that the pressure intensified following reports that Wike’s regular monthly media briefings were generating growing public disaffection against the president and his administration.

Wike was notably absent from Thursday’s National Council of State meeting at the Presidential Villa, which was attended by former Nigerian leaders, serving governors, and ex-Chief Justices of the Federation. He was represented at the meeting by Hajiya Mariya Mahmoud, Minister of State for the FCT.

A senior aide familiar with the development told Signal.ng that “the president’s men are worried that Wike’s growing notoriety for inflammatory remarks and confrontational style is beginning to damage the image of the government.”

According to the aide, “Wike is doing well in infrastructure development, and the president appreciates that. But his frequent outbursts and threats during media briefings have become a liability. They are increasingly being viewed as a source of negative publicity for both him and the president,” the official added.

Multiple insiders also confirmed that members of the Lagos APC elders’ council, popularly known as the Governance Advisory Council (GAC), have advised President Tinubu to realign politically with Governor Siminalayi Fubara of Rivers State ahead of the 2027 general elections.

The elders reportedly told the president that Wike had become “a political baggage” and warned that maintaining close ties with him could harm the administration’s reputation and electoral standing in the South-South region.

One of the elders, an 88-year-old long-time political associate of President Tinubu, who remains one of his most trusted advisers was said to have personally told him during a private meeting in Lagos that “it is time to do away with Wike.”

The elder, according to sources, advised President Tinubu to “work with Fubara instead, because the Rivers governor has shown calmness, patience, and restraint even in the face of provocation.”

“The elders reminded the president that Fubara remained loyal during his suspension and didn’t rock the boat,” one presidency insider disclosed.

“They told him that maltreating Fubara, an Ijaw man, could send a wrong message to the riverine people of Rivers and the Niger Delta as a whole,” the source added.

Inside sources further revealed that while the President’s Chief of Staff, Femi Gbajabiamila, is strongly opposed to dropping Wike, Tinubu is said to be seriously considering the elders’ advice.

One official said: “The president is beginning to see the wisdom in the argument. He has already asked one of the senior officials in the presidency, who handles ministerial evaluations, to prepare a report on the FCT minister.”

The source further revealed that there are ongoing plans to “ease Wike out” during the president’s third anniversary in office next year, using the growing number of petitions against the minister as justification.

“There are already several petitions in the president’s office, some alleging financial impropriety and abuse of power. The president has ordered a discreet investigation to verify these claims and build a case that could make Wike’s resignation appear inevitable,” the source said.

If the reports are accurate, the political romance between President Tinubu and Nyesom Wike once seen as a formidable alliance that bridged party divides may be heading toward an uncertain end, marking a new phase in the evolving political realignment ahead of 2027.