The All Progressives Congress (APC) has begun moves to resolve the growing disagreement between the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, and APC governors over the activities of the Rainbow Coalition ahead of the 2027 general elections.

The disagreement centres on whether politicians and opposition groups supporting President Bola Tinubu’s re-election should also back APC candidates contesting governorship and legislative elections.

The Progressive Governors’ Forum, led by Imo State Governor Hope Uzodimma, has maintained that APC governors will support Tinubu’s re-election as well as candidates contesting under the APC platform at all levels.

Wike, however, has taken a different position, insisting that his support is specifically for Tinubu and does not extend to all APC candidates.

A member of the APC National Working Committee (NWC) told Daily Sun that while Wike and the APC governors may have a common objective of supporting Tinubu, the coalition could still clash with APC candidates in other elections.

The NWC member said the issue requires political consultations rather than public exchanges, adding that the APC leadership would intervene through “multi-level engagement.”

The governors had earlier rejected any political arrangement capable of weakening the APC or its candidates.

Uzodimma said the forum had unanimously resolved that its members would not support or endorse any alliance that could undermine Tinubu’s re-election, weaken the APC or affect the party’s candidates at any level.

Wike, in response, argued that there was no agreement requiring members of the Rainbow Coalition or opposition parties supporting Tinubu to campaign for APC candidates in other elections.

He said his commitment was to mobilise support for Tinubu’s return to office, while political parties remained free to field candidates for governorship and legislative elections.

“The Rainbow Coalition has nothing to do with the APC,” Wike said, describing it as a platform for mobilising support across political parties for Tinubu.

The minister also cited the 2023 elections in Imo, Abia, Enugu and Ebonyi as examples of voters supporting different parties in presidential and legislative elections.

Wike argued that voters could support Tinubu for president while choosing candidates from other parties in governorship or legislative contests.

“Politics is local,” he said, urging politicians who have challenges in their respective states to resolve them without using Tinubu’s re-election as a basis for political disagreements.

The APC leadership is now expected to engage the parties involved in an effort to prevent the disagreement from escalating ahead of the 2027 elections.