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Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister, Nyesom Wike, has declared that he will never support Imo State Governor, Hope Uzodimma, to become President of the Senate, alleging that the governor’s opposition to him is linked to his ambition to lead the upper chamber after the 2027 general elections.
Wike made the statement on Monday while appearing as a guest on TVC News’ Journalists’ Hangout, where he accused Uzodimma of working to influence the emergence of senators and members of the House of Representatives ahead of the 2027 elections in furtherance of his alleged Senate presidency ambition.
According to Wike, Uzodimma has about 11 months left in office and is already positioning himself for a political career beyond his tenure as Imo State governor, which is expected to end in January 2028.
“Hope Uzodimma became a governor by taking fourth position. He has 11 months to leave office. President Tinubu will be inaugurated by May 2027, and Uzodimma’s tenure will end around January 2028. Now, he wants to leave his office to run for Senate President,” Wike said.
The FCT minister alleged that Uzodimma had been encouraging APC governors to work towards producing senators and House of Representatives members who would support his reported ambition to become Senate President.
“What he does is to tell APC governors to produce the senators and House of Reps members because of his agenda to become Senate President,” he alleged.
Wike also claimed that Uzodimma was concerned about politicians who lost the APC primaries and subsequently defected to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to contest the 2027 elections.
He alleged that some of the politicians could emerge victorious and, having received his support, might not support Uzodimma’s reported bid for the Senate presidency.
“Governor Uzodimma is afraid that the senators who lost in APC and moved to the PDP might win and won’t support him to become Senate President because they’re running with Wike’s support,” he said.
Wike then made his position on Uzodimma’s alleged ambition unequivocal.
“Life or death, I will never support a character of Hope Uzodimma to become the Senate President of Nigeria,” the minister declared.
The latest remarks come amid an increasingly public disagreement between Wike and Uzodimma over political developments ahead of the 2027 elections. Uzodimma, who is also Chairman of the Progressive Governors’ Forum, has criticised political moves associated with Wike’s coalition, while Wike has continued to defend his political activities and his support for President Bola Tinubu’s re-election bid.
Wike’s latest comments have now brought the reported ambition for the Senate presidency to the centre of his dispute with the Imo governor, although Uzodimma has not, in the remarks cited, publicly confirmed that he intends to contest for the position.
