The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, said that President Bola Tinubu could have delivered victory for the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the recent Osun State governorship election, insisting that the outcome would have been different had the President chosen to pursue the contest by all means necessary.

Wike made the remarks on Tuesday while inspecting flood-prone areas in Maitama, Abuja. During the exercise, he fielded questions on the just-concluded Osun governorship election and the political undertones surrounding its result.

Speaking on why the APC failed to clinch victory in the state, Wike explained that the outcome was not a reflection of the party’s inability to win, but rather a deliberate decision by the President not to pursue victory “at all costs.”

He stated that “If the President had wanted to win the Osun State election at all costs, I would have been there and we would have won it, and there’s nothing the governor can do.”

The statement suggests that Wike believes his personal involvement and political strategy could have swayed the outcome in favour of the APC, regardless of the incumbent governor’s standing in the state.

Despite being a chieftain of the PDP, Wike has remained a strong and vocal supporter of the Tinubu-led federal administration, a political posture he has sustained even while technically still belonging to the opposition party. His continued backing of the APC-led government, despite his PDP membership, has remained a notable feature of the current political landscape.

Beyond the Osun election, Wike also turned his attention to the 2027 general election, expressing confidence that President Tinubu would face a far less difficult contest than he did during the 2023 presidential election. According to him, the political opposition in the country has been significantly weakened, leaving it in no position to mount a serious challenge against the President’s re-election ambitions.

On the state of the opposition ahead of 2027, Wike said, “2027 elections will be the easiest one for the President compared to 2023.”
He further added, “This time around, the opposition has been crippled, homeless, no feather.”