The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has declared that he remains in charge of the political structures in Rivers State and the FCT, vowing to deliver them to President Bola Tinubu in the 2027 presidential election.
Mr Wike made the declaration on Wednesday during a media chat in Port Harcourt, where he described himself as the “General Commander of the Political Infantry” and dismissed the suggestion that only a sitting governor could control a state’s political structure. “You do not need to be governor before you can be in charge. I am the General Commander of the Political Infantry; therefore, I am in charge. So also in FCT.
I owe the President to give these two,” he said. Mr Wike, a former governor of Rivers State, has remained one of Mr Tinubu’s strongest political allies outside the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), despite retaining his membership of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). He has repeatedly pledged to mobilise support for Mr Tinubu in Rivers ahead of the 2027 election.
In February, Mr Wike said supporters of the president in Rivers did not need a sitting governor to mobilise votes for him, arguing that he and his allies had enough political structures across the state to deliver the president. His latest declaration comes amid continuing questions over the balance of political influence in Rivers State, where Governor Siminalayi Fubara has returned to the political centre after last year’s crisis with Mr Wike.
Mr Wike, however, insisted that occupying the governorship was not the only route to political control. Explaining his political role, Mr Wike said his objective was to ensure that Mr Tinubu wins both Rivers and the FCT.