A Minister’s Denial
Nyesom Wike, the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, has publicly rejected any suggestion that he played a role in the court judgment that stripped Imo State Governor Hope Uzodimma of the All Progressives Congress ticket for Imo West Senatorial District and recognised former governor Rochas Okorocha as the party’s candidate for the 2027 election.
Speaking during a live media chat on Thursday, Wike described attempts to link him to the ruling as mischievous, stressing that he neither filed nor took part in the suit. His remarks came in response to a question about whether he was behind the Federal High Court decision delivered on October 29.
“First of all, anybody calling my name is being mischievous. I didn’t go to court. I’m not in APC. I don’t know what the issue is,” the minister said.
Background to the Ruling
The judgment was delivered by Justice Obiora Egwuatu of the Federal High Court in Abuja. The court ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission to recognise Okorocha as the APC candidate for Imo West Senatorial District in the 2027 general election. It held that Okorocha, and not Uzodimma, won the party’s senatorial primary conducted on May 18, 2026, and directed INEC to replace the governor’s name with that of the former governor.
The decision arose from a suit filed by Okorocha challenging INEC’s recognition of Uzodimma as the winner of the primary. According to the court, the evidence presented established that Okorocha secured the majority of lawful votes cast. The Imo State chapter of the APC has disputed the ruling, and Uzodimma has indicated that he plans to appeal.
Wike Responds to Reported Warning
During the media chat, Wike also addressed speculation surrounding a warning reportedly issued by Uzodimma a day before the judgment. The governor was said to have threatened to seize the vehicle of anyone promoting a “Rainbow Coalition” in Imo State.
The minister described the reported threat as uncivilised. “They were saying that because a day before that judgment was given, he had openly warned people that, ‘No Rainbow Coalition here. If I see… I’ll collect the vehicle for you.’ Very, very uncivilised,” Wike said.
He also referred to a video circulating of him dancing with Okorocha at an event, explaining that the footage dated back to when he hosted the former Imo governor while the latter was still in office. “Now they showed the video where Rochas and I danced when I hosted him when he was governor. So that was that dance,” he said.
The Rainbow Coalition Dispute
Speculation about Wike’s involvement was fuelled by his political disagreement with Uzodimma over the proposed Rainbow Coalition, an arrangement aimed at drawing politicians across party lines together to support President Bola Tinubu’s re-election bid in 2027. Under the plan, politicians would not necessarily abandon their parties or back APC candidates in other contests.
Wike, who remains a member of the Peoples Democratic Party, has said that under the arrangement, PDP members could ask their supporters to vote for Tinubu in the presidential election while backing PDP candidates for governorship and legislative seats. He has maintained that his support for the president does not prevent the opposition party from fielding candidates in other races.
Okorocha, in an interview on Channels Television’s Politics Today on October 29, praised the Rainbow Coalition idea and announced plans to establish a similar alliance in Imo State. He said he intended to bring members of the PDP and other political groups together to support Tinubu in 2027.
Support for the President
Defending the arrangement, Wike argued that political allies do not have to adopt the same campaign strategy or support the same candidates at every level. He insisted that the priority should be the president’s victory at the polls.
“In any case, we are supporting Mr President, for Christ’s sake. Your business is to make sure, first things is, Mr President wins the election. As it is today, anybody who talks about the priority… should be that Mr President wins the election. That’s my priority,” he said.
While the minister acknowledged his public disagreement with Uzodimma over the Rainbow Coalition initiative, he denied any knowledge of the internal political wrangling within the APC that produced the court case. For now, the ruling stands, the Imo APC has rejected it, and the governor has signalled his intention to challenge it on appeal.
