2027: Wike’s Rainbow Coalition Rattles APC In Three States

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The emergence of the Rainbow Coalition associated with the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has generated political tensions within the All Progressives Congress (APC), particularly in Imo, Kwara and Gombe states, ahead of the 2027 general elections, LEADERSHIP Sunday can report.

The development comes amid concerns that aggrieved APC members could align with opposition platforms while supporting President Bola Tinubu’s re-election bid.

Wike has maintained that his political mobilisation is aimed at securing another term for Tinubu, even as he insists that the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) will field candidates for governorship, National Assembly and State Assembly elections.

The arrangement has drawn attention to the possibility of politicians supporting a presidential candidate from one party while backing candidates of other parties in state and legislative elections.

Coalition Raises Questions Over Tinubu’s Re-election

However, an Abuja-based civil society group, The News Direction (TND), has criticised the minister’s political activities, describing them as an affront to democracy and the multiparty system.

The executive director of TND, Chris John Alofu, told LEADERSHIP Sunday that the Rainbow Coalition was an initiative directed towards 2031 and intended to advance Wike’s political ambition.

He warned that the arrangement could undermine Tinubu’s electoral prospects in 2027 by creating divisions between the President and APC governors.

“The Rainbow Coalition is an initiative driving towards 2031 by the minister to further his political ambition, but it may cause an upheaval for President Tinubu’s electoral success because the state governors are now fighting for their political survival, while the President himself appears to be looking the other way as Wike wreaks havoc,” he said.

Political Analysts Warn Of Party Fragmentation

Reacting to the development, the national vice president of the Nigerian Political Science Association, Professor Murtala Muhammad, said the Rainbow Coalition could constitute a significant political threat to the APC.

He said the arrangement had raised concerns about possible political realignments ahead of 2027, particularly in states where disagreements over governance, zoning, appointments and candidate selection had generated tensions within party structures.

Muhammad recalled that the 2013 opposition merger, which culminated in the formation of the APC and its victory in the 2015 elections, demonstrated how fragmented political interests could unite to capture power without necessarily establishing a coherent ideological or programme-based alternative.

He warned that coalitions without clear ideological direction risk becoming platforms for elite power struggles rather than instruments of popular transformation.

According to him, the Rainbow Coalition could intensify opposition realignments and electoral fragmentation, particularly in states where internal grievances remain unresolved.

On the possibility of politicians supporting Tinubu while backing candidates from other parties, Muhammad said such choices were legitimate in a multiparty democracy and consistent with democratic pluralism and voter autonomy.

He, however, warned that excessive reliance on personal ambition and political calculations could undermine party identities, ideological consistency and accountability.

“Supporting candidates across party lines may be democratically legitimate, but it should not become an excuse for ideological inconsistency and the erosion of political accountability,” he said.

On the emergence of aggrieved APC politicians on opposition platforms, Muhammad said the development exposed weaknesses in the ruling party’s internal democratic structures, particularly in inclusiveness, transparency and candidate-selection processes.

He cited controversies surrounding the APC’s 2018 primaries, saying disputes over nomination procedures and perceived imposition could weaken party cohesion and create opportunities for opposition mobilisation.

Muhammad urged the APC leadership to establish credible reconciliation mechanisms involving governors, former governors, aggrieved aspirants and grassroots stakeholders.

He also advocated transparent and competitive primaries, stronger internal consultation and effective grievance-resolution mechanisms, warning against excessive influence by incumbent governors over party structures.

Political parties, he said, should not become the private electoral estates of political officeholders. He added that reconciliation should address underlying grievances rather than depend solely on the distribution of political appointments.

Split-Ticket Voting Could Reshape 2027 Polls

Similarly, Professor Umar Adamu of Gombe State University said the coalition could encourage split-ticket voting, whereby voters support candidates from different parties at presidential, governorship and legislative levels.

He explained that voters could support Tinubu for president while rejecting an APC governor whose performance they considered unsatisfactory.

According to him, voters increasingly assess candidates individually based on their policies, records and performance rather than automatically supporting every candidate presented by the same party.

The political analyst also argued that public dissatisfaction with the President could sometimes stem from the performance of state governors and their implementation of government policies.

“It is not everybody that is against Tinubu that Tinubu directly affected him. Mostly, it is the state governors,” he said.

Adamu identified internal party disputes and candidate imposition as other factors capable of weakening party structures. He said consensus arrangements should reflect the wishes of party members rather than serve as instruments for imposing preferred candidates.

Uzodimma Moves To Protect APC Interests In Imo

The political developments have also generated reactions in Imo State, where Governor Hope Uzodimma, chairman of the Progressive Governors’ Forum, has reportedly opposed arrangements that could weaken APC candidates.

The development comes amid a dispute over the Imo West Senatorial District ticket, which former Governor Rochas Okorocha secured following a court judgment concerning the APC’s nomination process. Uzodimma has indicated his intention to challenge the decision.

Uzodimma has also dismissed the existence of a Rainbow Coalition in Imo, insisting that members of the President Bola Tinubu Door-to-Door Movement must support Tinubu and all APC candidates.

He reportedly warned that members of the movement who worked against APC candidates could lose the vehicles provided to support their activities.

In Kwara State, the political situation has attracted attention following the emergence of Senator Saliu Mustapha as a PDP candidate after leaving the APC over disagreements surrounding the party’s nomination process.

Mustapha unveiled the Otoge Progressives Rainbow Coalition and identified former Senate President Bukola Saraki as one of its supporters.

Wike has also criticised Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq over the APC’s candidate-selection process, accusing him of excluding serving senators and members of the House of Representatives from party decisions.

The FCT minister has argued that aggrieved politicians should be free to contest elections on other platforms while supporting Tinubu’s re-election.

AbdulRazaq, however, has welcomed Wike’s participation in Tinubu’s presidential campaign arrangements, saying it could help attract votes from both APC and PDP supporters.

Pantami’s Emergence Deepens Gombe Political Tensions

In Gombe State, former Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Professor Isa Ali Pantami, has emerged as a candidate of a PDP faction after withdrawing from the APC governorship primary over alleged irregularities and unfair treatment.

The initial PDP primary that produced him was reportedly nullified by a court over procedural issues, prompting a fresh exercise. His emergence has also been affected by a dispute over the omission of his name from the list submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

Wike has reportedly said he does not know Pantami personally, amid reports linking the former minister’s political emergence to the FCT minister’s wider cross-party political arrangements.

The developments have drawn attention to the relationship between the Rainbow Coalition and the APC, particularly as Wike maintains that his political mobilisation is intended to secure Tinubu’s re-election rather than strengthen the ruling party at every level.

Muhammad said the 2027 elections should be determined by ideas, governance performance, credible alternatives and public confidence rather than political coercion or personalised loyalty.

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Join Our WhatsApp Channel –> –> Ademu Idakwo Ademu Idakwo is a journalist with Leadership Media Group with. He has 23 years of work experience, specialising in politics and human interest reporting. His published work has contributed to political discourse in Nigeria and across Africa.