Director of Politics at Arise News, Sumner Sambo, has said some All Progressives Congress (APC) governors are afraid of the coalition being built by the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT, Nyesom Wike, in Rivers State ahead of the 2027 election.
NEWSNGR reports that Sambo, speaking on Arise Television’s The Morning Show on Monday, said some governors fear voters may find it difficult to separate their choices across different political parties when voting for presidential, governorship, and other candidates.
According to Sambo, there are concerns that Wike’s political calculations ahead of the 2027 general elections could injure Tinubu.
He said, “If you look at Nyesom Wike and the governors in the APC right now, you see that the governors in the APC are already advising President Tinubu to be cautious of this coalition that Nyesom Wike is trying to put.
“They are afraid that on election day, not many people will be able to decipher between voting for president, APC, and then voting for governors, PDP, and then maybe voting for some other party.
“So, the governors are already having a morbid fear that this coalition that Nyesom Wike is building may actually injure President Tinubu at some point.”
Speaking further, Sambo said the emergence of African Democratic Congress (ADC) vice-presidential candidate from Rivers State could significantly alter the voting pattern in the state.
Sambo said Wike should not underestimate the political influence of opposition figures and the growing challenge to the APC.
He described Rivers as one of Nigeria’s most cosmopolitan states, arguing that political leaders could not simply impose their preferences on the electorate.
He added, “I think Nyesom Wike should also be very cautious in his statement. For the vice presidential candidate of the ADC to come from Rivers State, it means that in the state, the vote will not go exactly the way he is thinking.
“And don’t forget, look at the crowd that actually came out to receive Peter Obi and Kwankwaso over there.
“Yes, you can’t ignore these people except if these elections are not free and fair. That’s when you underrate people, especially in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.
“Rivers is one of the cosmopolitan states that we have in Nigeria. You cannot just put things in the mouth of people and think that it will be easier for you to ride roughshod.”
