Fresh cracks appear to be widening within the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) as party leaders and senior government officials are reportedly plotting a coordinated move to rein in the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, over what they describe as his “excesses” and disruptive influence within the party.
Multiple party sources revealed that the move, allegedly initiated at the highest levels of the APC national leadership, is aimed at curbing the minister’s growing influence and preventing what party leaders see as rising internal disharmony, particularly in Rivers State.
Wike has reportedly fallen out with key elements of the APC leadership following the party’s open endorsement of the 2027 re-election bid of Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara. The endorsement, which enjoys the backing of top party figures and senior government officials, is said to have infuriated the former Rivers governor, who considers Fubara’s political rise as his own creation.
Sources disclosed that the APC’s pro-Fubara stance has also received the support of influential figures in President Bola Tinubu’s administration, including Vice President Kashim Shettima and the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu further deepening the rift between the minister and the party hierarchy.
Wike, who preceded Fubara as governor of Rivers State, was instrumental in mobilising the political machinery that led to Fubara’s emergence as the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate and eventual winner of the 2023 governorship election. However, the once-solid alliance between political godfather and protégé reportedly began to unravel barely five months into Fubara’s tenure, largely over disagreements related to power sharing and control of state resources.
The political disagreement soon escalated into a full-blown crisis, with Wike allegedly backing moves to impeach the governor. The tension persisted until March 2025, when the Federal Government imposed emergency rule on Rivers State, suspending the governor and members of the State House of Assembly for six months.
Following the lifting of the emergency rule, Rivers State politics took a dramatic turn. Governor Fubara reportedly recalibrated his political alliances, shifting closer to President Tinubu and the APC. This realignment culminated in Fubara’s defection from the PDP to the APC on December 9, 2025 a move described by party insiders as a “successful political ambush” that caught the FCT minister completely off guard.
Investigations by THE WHISTLER revealed that the current efforts to “cage” Wike are being coordinated by an influential APC governor from the South-East, who occupies a strategic position among APC governors nationwide. The governor is reportedly angered by alleged moves traced to Wike to sponsor a rival political structure in his state, using a prominent PDP figure as the spearhead.
Further findings indicate that the plot to “cut the minister to size” may involve a broad coalition of APC governors, federal ministers, party leaders, and influential stakeholders within the Tinubu administration many of whom are said to be weary of the minister’s confrontational style and public outbursts.
Party leaders, including Vice President Shettima, are said to have expressed deep concern over Wike’s recent conduct, particularly his open verbal attack on the APC National Secretary, Ajibola Basiru. The minister’s outburst reportedly followed Basiru’s public endorsement of Governor Fubara as the leader of the APC in Rivers State, a position also affirmed by the APC National Chairman, Prof. Nentawe Yilwatda, and other senior party figures.
Sources further revealed that part of the unfolding strategy involves submitting a formal resolution to President Tinubu, outlining reasons why party leaders believe they can no longer accommodate Wike within an APC-led administration.
“As a matter of fact, they are prepared to ask the President to choose between Minister Wike and the leadership of the APC,” a highly placed source disclosed. “That demand could put the President in a serious political dilemma.”
According to insiders, the aggrieved party leaders and stakeholders are waiting for President Tinubu to return from his end-of-year vacation abroad before formally presenting their demands.
Meanwhile, Wike is said to be fully aware of the alleged plot but remains undeterred. He has reportedly intensified political engagements across local government areas in Rivers State, campaigning openly for President Tinubu’s re-election in 2027.
Despite this, the minister has vowed to resist any attempt by the APC to grant Governor Fubara a second-term ticket on the party’s platform. Wike insists there is a subsisting political agreement barring Fubara from seeking re-election an agreement he claims President Tinubu is fully aware of.
“Agreement is agreement,” the minister has repeatedly stated, maintaining that the terms must be honoured. According to Wike, part of the deal was that he would play a decisive role in determining Fubara’s successor, a position he insists on enforcing.
However, some APC leaders dismiss the minister’s claims as outdated and politically irrelevant.
“One thing is clear the minister is living in the past,” an APC chieftain who requested anonymity said. “Wike keeps referring to an agreement he had with Governor Fubara of the PDP. But what we have today is Governor Fubara of the APC. There is a world of difference.”
As tensions continue to rise, political observers warn that stormy days may lie ahead within the ruling party, as all eyes remain fixed on President Tinubu’s return and how he chooses to navigate the deepening power struggle.
