by Nigerian News24 Correspondents
Former governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers State, Tonye Cole, has criticised the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, over what he described as Wike’s conflicting political allegiance.
Speaking on Politics Today, a Channels Television programme on Friday, Cole questioned why Wike, who publicly identifies as a member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), continues to maintain close ties with the ruling APC.
“Is he APC or is he PDP? As far as we know today, he is PDP,” Cole said. “We cannot keep confusing the electorate in Rivers State and Nigerians at large. It is dangerous for democracy when someone belongs to one party but influences another. It creates a hybrid system that lacks clarity and risks turning Nigeria into a one-party state.”
Wike, a former governor of Rivers State, openly opposed his party’s presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, during the 2023 elections, insisting that power should shift to the South. He was later appointed as FCT minister by President Bola Tinubu and has since voiced support for Tinubu’s second-term ambition.
During the August 30 local government elections in Rivers, the APC secured 20 out of 23 council seats, while the PDP won only three, including Obio/Akpo—Wike’s political base, where he once served as chairman before becoming governor between 2015 and 2023.