“I never told mr president i will join APC’”— Wike fires back at Hope Uzodimma

Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has dismissed suggestions that his support for President Bola Tinubu means he had agreed to join the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Wike made the clarification during an interview with Arise News while responding to the APC Governors’ Forum’s rejection of his proposed “Rainbow Coalition” ahead of the 2027 general elections. The forum, chaired by Imo State Governor Hope Uzodimma, had said APC governors would support only the party’s candidates.

Wike maintained that he had been clear from the beginning that his commitment was to support Tinubu, not to defect from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the APC.

“I said I will support the President from day one. I never told Mr. President I will join APC. Go and ask him. If I want to join APC, it’s not people like Hope who will tell me to join APC.”

Taking a direct swipe at Uzodimma, Wike said the Imo governor was “lucky” that he was not a member of the APC, adding that he would not accept what he described as “that kind of rubbish” allegedly happening within the party.

Wike has also argued that supporting Tinubu for president does not require him or other politicians to abandon their respective parties or stop supporting candidates in other elections.

The dispute is linked to Wike’s proposed Rainbow Coalition, which he has described as a cross-party effort to mobilise support for Tinubu while allowing political parties to maintain their own candidates in governorship and legislative contests.

Watch him speak below …

“I said I will support the President from day one. I never told Mr. President I will join APC. Go and ask him. If I want to join APC, it’s not people like Hope who will tell me to join APC. In fact, he is lucky I’m not in APC because I wouldn’t take that kind of rubbish he is… pic.twitter.com/3MBFQGIyxi

— YabaLeftOnline (@yabaleftonline) September 16, 2026