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The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has denied any involvement in the Federal High Court judgment that recognised former Imo State Governor, Rochas Okorocha, as the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate for Imo West Senatorial District in the 2027 general elections.
Wike described allegations linking him to the judgment as mischievous, insisting that he neither initiated the court case nor participated in the legal proceedings.
The minister made the clarification on Thursday during a live media chat while responding to questions about whether he influenced the judgment delivered on October 29.
“First of all, anybody calling my name is being mischievous. I didn’t go to court. I’m not in APC. I don’t know what the issue is,” he said.
Wike also reacted to reports that Imo State Governor, Hope Uzodimma, had threatened to seize the vehicles of individuals promoting the proposed Rainbow Coalition in the state, allegedly a day before the court judgment.
Describing the reported warning as uncivilised, the minister questioned the governor’s position on the political alliance.
“They were saying that because a day before that judgment was given, he had openly warned people that, ‘No Rainbow Coalition here. If I see… I’ll collect the vehicle for you.’ Very, very uncivilised,” Wike said.
He further addressed a video circulating online showing him dancing with Okorocha, explaining that the footage was recorded when he hosted the former Imo governor while he was still in office.
“Now they showed the video where Rochas and I danced when I hosted him when he was governor. So that was that dance,” he added.
The controversy followed a Federal High Court judgment in Abuja, where Justice Obiora Egwuatu ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to recognise Okorocha as the APC candidate for Imo West Senatorial District in the 2027 general election.
The court ruled that Okorocha, rather than Uzodimma, won the party’s senatorial primary conducted on May 18, 2026, directing INEC to replace the governor’s name with that of the former governor.
The judgment followed a suit instituted by Okorocha challenging INEC’s recognition of Uzodimma as the winner of the primary. The court held that the evidence presented established that Okorocha secured the majority of lawful votes cast.
However, the ruling has been disputed by the Imo State chapter of the APC, while Uzodimma has indicated his intention to challenge the decision at the appellate court.
Speculation about Wike’s possible connection to the judgment was also linked to his political disagreement with Uzodimma over the proposed Rainbow Coalition, an alliance designed to bring politicians across party lines together to support President Bola Tinubu’s re-election bid in 2027.
The arrangement is expected to allow politicians to support Tinubu’s presidential ambition without necessarily leaving their respective political parties or abandoning their preferred candidates in governorship and legislative elections.
Wike, who remains a member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), has consistently maintained that PDP members can support Tinubu for president while backing candidates of their party in other elections.
During an interview on Channels Television’s Politics Today on October 29, Okorocha reportedly praised Wike’s Rainbow Coalition proposal and announced plans to establish a similar political alliance in Imo State.
The former governor said he intended to bring members of the PDP and other political groups together to mobilise support for Tinubu ahead of the 2027 presidential election.
Speaking further on Thursday, Wike defended the idea of politicians supporting the same presidential candidate while maintaining different political interests in other electoral contests.
He argued that political allies did not necessarily have to adopt identical campaign strategies or support the same candidates across all levels of elections.
“In any case, we are supporting Mr President, for Christ’s sake. Your business is to make sure, first things is, Mr President wins the election. As it is today, anybody who talks about the priority… should be that Mr President wins the election. That’s my priority,” Wike said.
