Wike Calls ADC Fake, Amaechi’s Bid Dead, Babachir Bitter

… Mocks Amaechi’s 2027 chances
… Accuses Babachir of anger over VP snub

By Yinka Giwa

Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has dismissed the African Democratic Congress (ADC) opposition coalition as a “fake coalition,” while declaring that Rotimi Amaechi’s 2027 presidential bid is “dead on arrival” and accusing former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Babachir Lawal, of bitterness after missing the vice-presidential slot.

Speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today yesterday, Wike ridiculed the ADC’s claim of being a coalition, saying it was nothing more than defectors parading under a new banner. “There’s no coalition. What is a coalition? You can talk about a coalition when CPC and AC and some PDP members went to form another party, that you can call a coalition,” he said.

On Amaechi, his predecessor as Rivers governor and former ally turned foe, Wike was blunt: “He knows he won’t get the ticket. I read that he said he knows the weaknesses of the president, so he knows how to defeat him, but he also knew the weaknesses of the president in 2022 when the president defeated him mercilessly in the primary. Nigerians know the last person they will give a ticket to because they know it (Amaechi’s bid) is dead on arrival.”

Wike accused Amaechi of lacking the credibility to fight corruption or uphold the rule of law, insisting that Nigerians would not entrust him with power.

Turning to recent opposition claims of momentum, Wike cited the results of last month’s by-elections across 13 states to argue that the ADC has no real following. “From what happened in the by-election, how can you say Nigerians are looking up to them? They have nothing to show,” he said.

The minister also lashed out at Babachir Lawal, saying his criticisms of President Bola Tinubu were motivated by personal disappointment. “His anger is that President Tinubu did not choose him as running mate. It is very clear. We are not kids,” Wike declared.

On claims that Tinubu is inaccessible, Wike retorted: “Everyone cannot reach out to Tinubu, he can’t attend to everyone, people should meet with ministers and advisers.”

Wike, often accused of stoking discord within the PDP while serving in Tinubu’s cabinet, insisted that neither Amaechi nor the ADC represented a serious challenge to the APC. “It’s not enough to just say, ‘I will do this,’ without showing your track record. Nigerians are not looking up to them,” he said.