POLITICS
APC Crisis Deepens as Party Leaders Warn Tinubu: Pressure Mounts Over Wike’s Rivers Politics, Threaten Showdown With Presidency
…says We May Ask The President To Choose Between Us And Wike
Tensions within the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) have intensified following strong warnings from senior party figures to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu over the political conduct of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, particularly in Rivers State.
The warning comes amid renewed hostilities between Wike and his successor, Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara, a political rift that APC leaders fear is threatening internal cohesion and undermining the party’s strategic interests ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Senior figures within the party say Wike’s increasing involvement in Rivers politics, despite not being a registered member of the APC, is creating deep unease within the ruling party.
According to them, the situation has reached a point where the Presidency may soon be forced to take a definitive stance.
A member of the APC National Working Committee (NWC), who spoke anonymously to The Guardian, disclosed that the party leadership is considering confronting President Tinubu directly if the situation continues unchecked.
“We may ask the President to choose between us and his FCT minister if Wike continues to behave as if only he can serve the political interests of the President in Rivers State or any other state for that matter. He is not a member of this party,” the source said.
The warning follows a controversial declaration by Wike that Governor Fubara would not secure a second term in office in 2027. That statement has reportedly infuriated APC loyalists in Rivers State, many of whom see it as an attempt by the FCT minister to dominate the political space and dictate outcomes in a state critical to the party’s future electoral calculations.
Party strategists argue that allowing Wike to wield such influence could severely damage the APC’s prospects in Rivers, an oil-rich and politically strategic state. They insist that the party cannot afford to have its electoral machinery undermined by a minister who is not formally aligned with the APC, especially as preparations for 2027 gradually begin.
According to insiders, concerns are growing that Wike’s actions may alienate grassroots party members and weaken the APC’s ability to consolidate power in the South-South region, where political loyalties remain fluid.
Adding to the growing criticism, former Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) National Vice Chairman (South-West), Eddy Olafeso, described Wike’s current predicament as the result of being politically outmanoeuvred by Governor Fubara.
Speaking in an interview with The Guardian, Olafeso said Wike is probably the most unfortunate politician in the history of Nigeria’s Fourth Republic, arguing that events in Rivers State have moved faster than the FCT minister anticipated.
According to him, Governor Fubara strategically aligned himself with the APC ahead of his former political benefactor, effectively leaving Wike politically isolated.
He said the Rivers State governor played politics faster than the minister by joining the APC, leaving his former boss in the cold.
Olafeso further revealed that influential APC figures have already made their position clear by recognising Fubara as the leader of the party in Rivers State, a development that reportedly occurred even before Wike resolved to defect to the APC.
“Some of them are even calling for his removal as minister,” he revealed.
As the crisis deepens, political observers say the unfolding drama could test President Tinubu’s ability to balance loyalty to key political allies with the need to maintain party unity, particularly in a region that could prove decisive in the next general elections.