Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has dismissed the idea that Governor Ademola Adeleke’s victory in the Osun governorship election represents a political setback for President Bola Tinubu or the Federal Government.
Wike, who remains a member of the Peoples Democratic Party, said the August 15 election was conducted without federal interference and should not be viewed as a contest between Adeleke and the Tinubu administration.
He spoke on Tuesday in Abuja while briefing journalists after inspecting areas affected by flooding in the FCT.
Wike said political parties were expected to make efforts to win elections, but argued that the Osun result did not necessarily reflect the strength or weakness of the Federal Government.
According to him, if President Tinubu had been determined to win Osun at all costs, he would have personally taken a more active role in the campaign.
“If the President wanted to win Osun at all costs, I would be involved, and I would have been there, and the governor would have known that it would have been different,” Wike said.
WIKE QUESTIONS OPPOSITION’S CLAIM OF VICTORY
The former Rivers State governor also questioned opposition politicians who celebrated Adeleke’s victory despite fielding their own candidates in the election.
He argued that if opposition parties genuinely wanted Adeleke to win, they should have agreed before the election to withdraw their candidates and support a single candidate.
Wike said the outcome should therefore not automatically be interpreted as evidence of a strong opposition coalition capable of defeating the All Progressives Congress at the national level.
Adeleke defeated the APC candidate, Bola Oyebamiji, by 511,067 votes to 444,815, winning 19 of Osun State’s 30 local government areas.
‘GOVERNORSHIP ELECTION IS DIFFERENT FROM PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION’
Wike warned against using the Osun election as a direct measure of what could happen in the 2027 presidential election.
He stressed that governorship elections are heavily influenced by local political dynamics, while presidential elections involve broader national factors.
“Governorship election is different from presidential election. You must know that. Governorship elections are local factors, local variables. National election is a different ball game,” he said.
Wike also pointed to what he described as the weakness of the opposition ahead of 2027, arguing that defeating an incumbent president would require a well-organised and sustained opposition movement.
He specifically challenged opposition groups such as the African Democratic Congress to demonstrate the electoral structure and strength needed to defeat the APC nationwide.
WIKE PREDICTS EASY 2027 VICTORY FOR TINUBU
Wike compared the political situation ahead of 2027 with the challenges Tinubu faced during the 2023 presidential election.
He argued that the opposition was more formidable in 2023, particularly with the influence of the G-5 governors, but claimed that such a political bloc does not currently exist against Tinubu.
Wike therefore predicted that the President would have a relatively easy path to re-election in 2027.
“But if it is this 2027 election against Bola Ahmed Tinubu, no, forget it. It’s over. No sentiment,” he declared.
