I won’t risk losing Rivers, FCT for APC Campaign DG job – Wike

Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has explained why he would not accept the position of Director-General of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Campaign Council for the 2027 election.

Wike said he would not want to take on a national campaign role that could put his political standing in Rivers State and the FCT at risk, particularly because he is not a registered member of the APC.

Speaking while addressing journalists after inspecting ongoing projects in Abuja, the former Rivers State Governor said his priority was to ensure that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu receives strong electoral support without exposing himself to unnecessary political risks.

Wike reportedly referenced previous presidential campaign directors-general who were unable to deliver their home states they represented.

He cited former Rivers State governor Rotimi Amaechi, who served as Director-General of the Muhammadu Buhari presidential campaign in 2015 and 2019, but was unable to secure the required 25 per cent presidential votes for Buhari in Rivers State in those elections, as well as Bukola role in Atiku Abubakar’s 2019 campaign.

Wike also referenced Aminu Tambuwal, who served as Atiku Abubakar’s campaign DG in 2023,and former Plateau State Governor Simon Bakori Lalong, who headed the APC presidential campaign that same year, noting that they all lost their respective states.

The FCT Minister has remained an outspoken supporter of Tinubu’s 2027 re-election bid despite remaining a member of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

Wike previously described himself as an asset to Tinubu’s campaign in Rivers State, suggesting that he would continue to mobilise support for the President without necessarily occupying a formal position within the APC campaign structure.

His comments come as the APC prepares for the 2027 presidential contest, with the party having appointed former Zamfara State Governor Abdulaziz Yari as Director-General of its Presidential Campaign Council.

Wike’s position further underscores the unusual political alignment in which a prominent PDP figure is serving in Tinubu’s administration while supporting the President bid for second term.

-9News Nigeria.