Wike unveils APC-PDP 'Rainbow Coalition' in Gwagwalada, backs Tinubu for 2027

The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has again pushed the Rainbow Coalition, a political arrangement that brings together members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the territory, as he campaigns for President Bola Tinubu's re-election in 2027.

Wike spoke on Monday in Gwagwalada, where he commissioned the area council's Civic Centre and held a stakeholders' meeting with APC and PDP leaders, traditional rulers, women and youth groups.

He dismissed those who question whether the coalition exists, saying they lack the ability to bring even their own households together.

Some greedy and selfish politicians do not understand what we call unity. They have no capacity to hold their space, they have no capacity to even hold their families, and they have no capacity to hold their communities,

he said, according to the accounts carried by Vanguard, The Sun, Independent and The Nation.

Wike argued that leaders who were once on opposite sides had shown that shared interests can override party loyalty. He said the FCT needs cooperation rather than political fighting, and that governance should be judged by whether it makes life better for residents.

Endorsements and appeals

The minister asked residents to support former Senator Philip Aduda and other candidates backed by the coalition, saying elected officials should stay close to the people they represent. He also questioned whether the current FCT representation at the National Assembly truly understands the problems of the six area councils: Gwagwalada, Kuje, Bwari, Kwali, Abaji and the Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC).

On the 2027 election, Wike told the gathering that voting day should be treated as a serious civic duty, not a time for trading or other business. He urged supporters to take their mobilisation to polling units and communities and to vote for Tinubu.

The FCT APC chairman, Ishaku Tanko Yamawo, called the meeting historic, saying politicians who once saw each other as rivals were now working together. He said political tension in the area had eased, with fewer reports of destroyed vehicles and violence during campaigns.

The FCT PDP chairman, Ismaila Mohammed Dogara, praised Wike for reviving the Gwagwalada project after what he said was 16 years of abandonment. The Aguma of Gwagwalada, Alhaji Muhammadu Magaji, also thanked the minister, saying the completed centre showed why continuity in government matters.

Gwagwalada Area Council chairman Kassim Mohammed listed roads his administration has built in the metropolis, Tungan Wada, Abum-pe and other communities, and asked Wike to fix the road linking the Army checkpoint to the Specialist Hospital.

A former council chairman, Zakari Angulu Dobi, recalled that the Civic Centre was about 80 per cent finished when he left office, but vandalism during the years it stood idle pulled it back to roughly 40 per cent.

Women leader Hajara Abdullahi asked for a cottage hospital, while youth leader Inuwa Guzo appealed for the rehabilitation of the Gwagwalada football stadium, which he said has been abandoned for more than 25 years.

What happens next

Wike said he has directed FCTA officials to look into the youths' requests for community and recreational facilities and to identify suitable sites. The coalition's test will come at the polls in 2027, when FCT residents decide whether the APC-PDP alliance translates into votes.