Uzodimma Presented APC Governors’ Position, Wike Should Stop Personal Attacks — Umeh

The National Ex-Officio of the All Progressives Congress (APC), South-East, Sir Amb. Ikechukwu Sunday Umeh, PhD, has advised the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and former Governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Wike, to stop attacking the leadership of the APC over the party’s position on his proposed Rainbow Coalition.

Umeh, who spoke against the backdrop of Wike’s recent exchanges with the APC Governors’ Forum, said that the FCT Minister’s position appeared to confuse Wike’s political support with the APC institutional structure of a political party.

According to him, having served the party at different levels, from State Auditor to State Organising Secretary and Chairman of the Forum of APC State Organising Secretaries before becoming National Ex-Officio; he understands that no support group operates independently above the recognised leadership and organs of a political party.

“Supporting President Tinubu is a welcome individual political choice which nobody can take away from Wike. But he cannot create an independent political platform, to support candidates against the APC governors in their different states and expect them to keep quiet and abandon their party and its candidates, which would negatively affect the landslide electoral performance of the APC in the forthcoming general elections.

“Rainbow Coalition is not the APC. The APC has its constitution, organs, structures, leaders and candidates. No support group can assume the authority of the party.”
Umeh said the position of the Progressive Governors’ Forum, led by Imo State Governor, Senator Hope Uzodimma, should be seen as a legitimate defence of party democracy rather than an attack on Wike.

The governors had maintained that their loyalty in the 2027 elections would be to APC candidates, with the forum reportedly stating:
“The forum has no intention to support any candidate at any level that is not an APC candidate because the candidates who are contesting the election are being sponsored by the party.”
Umeh said there was nothing undemocratic about the governors taking such a position.

“Democracy gives Wike the right to support whoever he chooses. The same democracy gives APC governors the right to defend their party, its structures and candidates. Their position is therefore not an attack on democracy; it is democracy in practice.”

He also faulted Wike’s reported description of APC governors as “politically lazy”, saying that it may be why he thinks he can maneuver them in their respective states to impose his Rainbow Coalition candidates on them, which they observed and rejected his antics which has made him gone garrulous.
According to Umeh, Wike should equally stop personalising the issue around Governor Hope Uzodimma.

“Governor Uzodimma did not invent the position of the Progressive Governors’ Forum. He communicated the collective decision of the governors. Attacking him personally and relating it to his state Imo is a mistake of the first order because Uzodimma has done organically well and Imo people have continued to appreciate and support him for that”

He therefore called on Wike to tone down his rhetoric, respect the APC Governors’ Forum and channel his political energy towards constructive engagement ahead of 2027.

The APC chieftain also reminded Wike that President Tinubu’s decision to appoint him as FCT Minister despite his remaining in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) demonstrated an unusual level of political accommodation.

He therefore urged the former Rivers governor to reciprocate that gesture with greater restraint and statesmanship rather than continuous confrontation with APC leaders.