President Bola Tinubu has openly praised FCT Minister Nyesom Wike for delivering electoral success to the All Progressives Congress in Saturday’s Area Council elections, saying the minister’s work in Abuja had translated into political dividends for the ruling party.
The commendation was contained in a statement issued on Sunday, February 22, by the president’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga.
“He commends the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, for his remarkable achievements in the territory, which have yielded political dividends to the governing All Progressives Congress,” the statement read.
The president’s public acknowledgement of Wike’s role in the APC’s electoral performance is significant, given that the minister remains officially a member of the Peoples Democratic Party, the main opposition.
Tinubu also congratulated all winners of elections held across the FCT, Kano State, and Rivers State on Saturday, while urging the newly elected officials to take their responsibilities seriously.
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Tinubu’s praise of Wike will inevitably intensify the debate around the minister’s political loyalties.
Since his appointment as FCT minister despite being a PDP member, Wike has consistently aligned himself with APC interests, drawing accusations from within his own party that he is actively undermining the opposition.
In the days leading up to Saturday’s election, two PDP chairmanship candidates in AMAC and Bwari Area Councils stepped down and endorsed their APC rivals, with both citing Wike’s intervention as the reason for their withdrawal.
The PDP condemned the withdrawals as shameful and unauthorised, accusing elements within the party of holding it hostage for the president.
The APC swept the FCT elections, winning key chairmanship seats across the territory amid reports of low voter turnout that opposition parties and civil society groups attributed partly to the curfew Wike imposed ahead of the polls.