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FCT Minister Nyesom Wike has claimed that President Bola Tinubu’s camp strategically leveraged Peter Obi’s candidacy in the 2023 presidential election to divide votes that would otherwise have gone to former Vice President Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Wike made the claim during an interview on Wednesday while explaining his support for Tinubu’s re-election bid ahead of the 2027 presidential election.
According to the minister, Obi, who contested the 2023 election on the platform of the Labour Party, was not considered a serious threat to Tinubu but was seen as capable of weakening Atiku’s support base, particularly in the South-South, traditionally regarded as a PDP stronghold.
“Look at the entire votes of Obi that would have gone to Atiku, all gone,” Wike said.
Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) won the 2023 presidential election with 8,794,726 votes, followed by Atiku with 6,984,520 votes, while Obi polled 6,101,533 votes to finish third.
Wike said the strategy was particularly effective in some South-South states, where he alleged that sections of the PDP structure encouraged voters to support Obi rather than Atiku.
“The South-South ought to be a PDP stronghold that would have made Atiku win the election. In Cross River, we say support Obi. APC took second in the state. In Edo, they supported Obi,” he said.
“So the PDP structure there supported Obi, because he was not a threat as per the election. Then in Rivers State, since I am here, we said no to Obi and Atiku. We supported the president.”
Obi won several states in the South-East and South-South, as well as Lagos State, in the 2023 election, while Atiku retained substantial support across northern Nigeria.
Wike, a former Rivers State governor and prominent PDP figure, has remained politically aligned with Tinubu despite retaining his ministerial position in the APC-led Federal Government. His position has deepened his longstanding dispute with sections of the PDP leadership.
The minister also dismissed the suggestion that Obi’s popularity, particularly among young Nigerians, would translate into sufficient electoral strength to win the 2027 presidential election.
“When he appeared at the NBA conference, they’re shouting Obi. For you, he’s popular. When the proper mathematics comes to the table, we’ll know,” Wike said.
Tinubu, Atiku and Obi are expected to be among the major contenders in the 2027 presidential contest, although the final field will depend on party nominations, alliances and the emergence of other candidates.
With the 2027 election still ahead, Wike’s comments have renewed debate over the impact of vote splitting in Nigeria’s three-way 2023 presidential contest and the political calculations that could shape the next election.
