The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has said he could have helped President Bola Tinubu secure victory for the All Progressives Congress in the August 15 governorship election in Osun State if the President had wanted to win the poll “at all costs.”
Wike, a member of the Peoples Democratic Party, said the outcome of the election showed that the Federal Government did not deploy its influence to manipulate the process in favour of the ruling APC.
The former Rivers State governor spoke on Tuesday while inspecting flood-prone areas in Maitama, Abuja.
According to Wike, if Tinubu had been determined to use the influence of the Federal Government to secure an APC victory, he would have supported him and ensured that the ruling party won the election.
“If the President had wanted to win the Osun State election at all costs, I would have been there, and we would have won it, and there’s nothing the governor can do,” Wike said.
His comments came days after the Osun governorship election, which was won by Governor Ademola Adeleke.
Adeleke, who contested on the platform of the Accord Party, secured 511,067 votes to defeat his closest challenger, Bola Oyebamiji of the APC, who polled 444,815 votes. The African Democratic Congress candidate, Najeem Salaam, came third with 17,180 votes.
The governor won in 19 of the state’s 30 local government areas, while the APC candidate secured victory in the remaining 11 local government areas.
The election had attracted considerable political attention because of its wider implications for the 2027 general elections. Osun is a key South-West state and has traditionally been a major battleground between the APC and opposition parties.
Wike argued that the election demonstrated that the Tinubu administration allowed voters to freely determine the outcome without using what is commonly described in Nigerian politics as “federal might”.
“There was no federal might used in Osun. When you see the force and might of the Federal Government, you will know,” the minister said.
The phrase “federal might” is often used in Nigerian political discussions to describe the influence of the Federal Government and its institutions during elections. It can refer broadly to the political strength and resources available to an incumbent federal administration.
Wike’s comments therefore appeared to suggest that the Federal Government could have influenced the outcome if it had chosen to do so, but deliberately refrained from taking such a step.
The minister also suggested that Adeleke could have been a member of the APC if political developments had taken a different direction.
“Ordinarily, Adeleke would have been with the APC if things had worked out well,” he said.
Adeleke’s political journey has been largely associated with the PDP. He was elected governor of Osun State in 2022 on the platform of the party and won re-election in the August 15 poll.
His latest victory came against an APC candidate backed by the governing party at the federal level. The result has since generated political debate about the strength of the APC and the opposition ahead of the 2027 elections.
Wike himself has maintained a complicated political position since the 2023 presidential election. Although he remains a member of the opposition PDP, he was appointed FCT minister by Tinubu after the election.
His appointment was part of the President’s efforts to bring politicians from outside the APC into his administration.
Wike was one of the five PDP governors who opposed the party’s presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, during the 2023 election. The group, known as the G5, had demanded that the PDP presidential ticket be supported by a candidate from the South after the party’s then National Chairman, Iyorchia Ayu, came from the North.
The dispute contributed to divisions within the PDP ahead of the 2023 election.
Since becoming a minister, Wike has remained openly supportive of Tinubu on several political issues, despite retaining his membership of the PDP. His latest comments on the Osun election are likely to add to the debate over his political relationship with the President and his position within the opposition party.
Wike also turned his attention to the 2027 presidential election, predicting that Tinubu would face an easier contest than he did in 2023.
“The 2027 elections will be the easier one for the President compared to 2023,” he said.
The minister based his prediction on what he described as the weakened condition of opposition parties.
“This time around, the opposition has been crippled, homeless, no feather,” Wike said.
The statement comes amid efforts by several opposition politicians and parties to form a stronger political platform ahead of the 2027 elections.
The opposition landscape has remained unsettled, with politicians from different parties discussing possible alliances and coalition arrangements aimed at challenging the APC.
The ADC, in particular, has emerged as one of the platforms attracting opposition figures seeking to build a stronger challenge to the ruling party. Former governors, political leaders and other prominent opposition figures have been linked to efforts to create a broad coalition.
The APC, meanwhile, has continued to strengthen its political structure across the country as it prepares for the 2027 elections.
The outcome of the Osun election has become part of the political argument over whether the APC’s control of the Federal Government gives it an advantage in the next general election.
While the APC lost the Osun governorship poll, the party has maintained control of the Federal Government and several states. The party’s supporters have also pointed to its growing political alliances and the defections of prominent opposition politicians as evidence of its strength ahead of 2027.
Wike’s comments, however, focus on the distinction between political strength and the use of government power during elections.
His claim that he could have helped Tinubu win Osun if the President wanted the victory “at all costs” suggests that he believes the APC had the political capacity to influence the result but chose not to do so.
The statement is also likely to fuel further discussion about the conduct of elections in Nigeria, particularly concerns over the use of state institutions and government influence during polls.
The Independent National Electoral Commission declared Adeleke the winner after the collation of results from the 30 local government areas.
His 511,067 votes gave him a margin of 66,252 votes over Oyebamiji.
With the 2027 general elections less than a year away, the Osun result is expected to remain an important reference point in political debates over the strength of the APC, the opposition and the role of federal power in elections.
For Wike, however, the result is evidence that Tinubu did not deploy the full political influence of the Federal Government to secure an APC victory.
He maintained that if the President had wanted a different outcome and had been prepared to use the full weight of federal power, he would have been willing to help deliver victory for the ruling party.