FCT Minister Nyesom Wike has dropped a bombshell over the All Progressives Congress’ defeat in the Osun State governorship election, claiming the party would have won if President Bola Tinubu had wanted victory “at all costs.”
Wike made the explosive disclosure on Tuesday while inspecting flood-prone areas in Maitama, Abuja, where he also weighed in on the political implications of the August 15 Osun governorship election.
According to the former Rivers State governor, the Federal Government deliberately did not deploy its full political machinery in the election.
He declared that if President Tinubu had been determined to deliver Osun to the APC, he personally would have travelled to the state to lead the political battle.
Wike said, “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.”
The statement comes just days after incumbent Governor Ademola Adeleke secured re-election, defeating the APC candidate, Bola Oyebamiji, by 66,252 votes.
Adeleke, who contested under the Accord platform, polled 511,067 votes, while Oyebamiji scored 444,815 votes, according to the results declared by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Wike’s ‘Federal Might’ Bombshell
Wike’s comment has immediately added another layer to the post-election debate, particularly because it suggests that the APC could have brought considerably more political firepower to the contest had the presidency chosen to do so.
The minister did not, however, explain why he believed Adeleke would have been unable to withstand such a political offensive.
His comments also come against the backdrop of the APC’s attempt to reclaim Osun after losing the governorship to Adeleke in 2022.
The latest election has therefore handed Adeleke another major political victory and extended his hold on the state, while the APC will now be left to examine what went wrong in its campaign against Oyebamiji.
‘2027 Will Be Easiest For Tinubu’
Wike did not stop at Osun.
Turning his attention to the 2027 presidential election, the FCT minister declared that President Tinubu would face a much easier battle than he did in 2023.
He attributed his confidence to what he described as the weakened condition of Nigeria’s opposition parties.
“2027 elections will be the easiest one for the President compared to 2023,” Wike said.
He went further, describing the opposition as “crippled” and “homeless”, arguing that it currently lacks the political strength required to mount a serious challenge against the ruling APC.
His comments come amid the deepening crisis within the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Wike’s own party, and the wider realignment of political forces ahead of 2027.
Wike has remained in the PDP while openly backing Tinubu’s re-election bid. He has repeatedly defended his position, saying his support for the President is a political decision he has no apology for.
Wike-Tinubu Alliance Still Raising Eyebrows
Wike’s continued support for Tinubu has remained one of the most striking political developments since the 2023 presidential election.
As one of the five PDP governors who formed the influential G5 bloc before the 2023 election, Wike refused to support the party’s presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, and instead backed Tinubu of the APC.
He subsequently joined Tinubu’s cabinet as FCT minister.
His position has since created a widening political rift between him and some former G5 allies, particularly Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde, who has said he will not support Tinubu in 2027.
Wike’s latest declaration therefore places the Osun defeat in a broader political picture: while the APC has demonstrated its strength in several parts of the country, the minister insists that the party’s biggest weapon heading into 2027 may be the weakness and divisions within the opposition camp.
For now, however, Adeleke’s victory means Osun remains outside the APC’s grasp — and Wike’s claim that he could have changed the outcome if Tinubu had ordered him into battle is certain to fuel fresh political arguments over what really happened behind the scenes in the fiercely contested election.
