A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Hon Farouk Adamu-Aliyu, has warned Nyesom Wike, Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), against using his support for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to want influence decisions in the internal affairs of the ruling party.
Aliyu, a former Minority Leader of the House of Representatives, insisted that Wike cannot decide for the APC how to run its campaigns, stressing that it is totally unacceptable for a disciplined and properly structured party such as the APC to submit itself to any coalition that is talking about voting for Tinubu and another party.
He said that such a kangaroo arrangement is a complete “no, no” for the APC, emphasising that the ruling party would not allow Wike to use it to build his own party in whatever guise.
Aliyu explained that the present concern of the APC was that Wike’s current political activities could become counterproductive if they continued to clash with APC structures and interests.
He specifically drew a distinction between Wike’s role in 2023, when he was still firmly within the PDP, and his current political position, noting that while Wike’s decision to oppose the PDP’s presidential candidate in 2023 benefited the APC, the circumstances should not be repeated within the ruling party.
Aliyu, who stated these when he featured on Channels Television programme; ‘Politics Today’ on Thursday evening, said that while the APC appreciates Wike’s role in destabilizing his own party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) ahead of the 2023 and later destroyed it, he would however, not be allowed to build a political structure within the APC.
He also noted that Wike crossed the red line by calling APC Governors who are the leaders of the party as “419ners, Lazy,”, saying the meeting of the Progressives Governors Forum where the decision was arrived at not to have anything to do with the so-called Rainbow Coalition was attended by the National Chairman of the APC and other national officers.
In the words of Aliyu; “The decision was a party’s decision and not a particular governor’s resolve. Wike has to retrace his step. We in the APC reject this name calling by Wike, calling our governors ‘Lazy, 419.’ Wike must know and made to understand that he cannot decide for us how we run our campaigns, and it is totally unacceptable.
“So, it is very, very uncalled for someone that claimed that he is trying to help us, to be insulting leaders and members of our party.
“We appreciate everything Wike has done for us. In fact, anybody who is willing to destroy his party for us, we will welcome him. However, we will not allow him to use our party to build his own party,” Aliyu stressed.
The APC chieftain said the party’s position was that supporters should vote for Tinubu as well as APC candidates contesting National and State Houses of Assembly seats.
He further said; “What we at the party have decided is no mixture. You vote for Tinubu, vote for all APC candidates in the National Assembly, vote for APC candidates for State Assembly. The party does not want a situation where Tinubu wins the presidency but lacks sufficient APC lawmakers to support his administration.
“We don’t want Tinubu to come when he can’t form his National Assembly, and that is the danger we are seeing with what Wike and others are doing,” he said.
When asked if Wike could constitute a danger to Tinubu’s 2027 victory, Aliyu said; “In some cases, yes,” warning that political leaders should be mindful of the hardship faced by Nigerians and focus on persuading voters rather than making statements capable of further aggravating the anger of the electorate.
“Instead of us begging, appealing, appeasing people, talk to people in such a way that they will vote for us again; we don’t want anybody who will come and insult Nigerians,” Aliyu enthused.
The APC chieftain acknowledged that many Nigerians were unhappy with some of the policies of the government, adding that the APC was aware of the economic difficulties, thus working hard to improve on its performance to regain public confidence.
Aliyu pointedly said that Wike must learn to moderate his speeches and remarks, particularly when addressing Nigerians and APC leaders.
He further said; “Just because you want to support the president, it doesn’t mean that you should insult people anyhow, particularly our leaders.”
“Wike is not an APC member and he should therefore be treated as a member of the opposition. He’s not a member of our party, so we will treat him as a member of the opposition,” Aliyu stated.
