Tinubu used Obi to split Atiku’s votes, win 2023 election — Nyesom Wike

Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has claimed that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu benefited from the division of opposition votes between former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi during the 2023 presidential election.

Wike alleged that Tinubu’s political camp deliberately allowed Obi, the Labour Party presidential candidate at the time, to gain support in some areas where the votes could otherwise have gone to Atiku, the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

The FCT minister made the claim on Wednesday during an interview while discussing his efforts to secure Tinubu’s re-election in the 2027 presidential election.

Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) won the 2023 election with 8,794,726 votes, while Atiku polled 6,984,520 votes to finish second. Obi came third with 6,101,533 votes.

All three politicians are expected to be major contenders in the 2027 presidential race.

“Look at the entire votes of Obi that would have gone to Atiku, all gone,” Wike said.

According to the minister, Obi was not considered a major threat to Tinubu’s victory in 2023, making it possible for his political camp to tolerate or support his emergence in some states where Atiku needed strong support.

Wike specifically cited parts of the South-South, traditionally regarded as a strong PDP region, as examples.

“The South-South ought to be a PDP stronghold that would have made Atiku win the election,” he said.

He claimed that political support was directed towards Obi in Cross River and Edo states, arguing that the strategy helped prevent Atiku from consolidating the region.

“In Cross River, we say support Obi. APC took second in the state. In Edo, they supported Obi,” Wike said.

“So the PDP structure there supported Obi, because he was not a threat as per the election. Then in Rivers State, since I am here, we said no to Obi and Atiku. We supported the President.”

Obi also won Lagos State, traditionally a stronghold of Tinubu and the APC, defeating the APC candidate in the state.

Wike, who remains a member of the PDP but has openly backed Tinubu’s re-election bid, also dismissed the suggestion that Obi’s popularity among sections of the electorate would translate into a presidential victory in 2027.

He argued that public enthusiasm for Obi did not necessarily correspond with the numerical strength required to win a nationwide presidential election.

“When he appeared at the NBA conference, they’re shouting Obi. For you, he’s popular. When the proper mathematics comes to the table, we’ll know,” Wike said.

The 2027 presidential contest is expected to feature another major battle among Tinubu, Atiku and Obi, although the final candidacies and political alignments remain subject to developments ahead of the election.

Tinubu will enter the contest as the incumbent president, with his administration facing criticism over economic hardship, food prices, insecurity and other governance challenges.

Atiku, meanwhile, is seeking the presidency again after his second-place finish in 2023, while Obi continues to maintain significant support among sections of the electorate, particularly younger voters.

The three political figures have also become central to the opposition realignment ahead of 2027, with the emergence of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) as a platform for several opposition politicians adding another dimension to the contest.

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