The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has declared that the faction of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) recognised by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has already been granted access codes to upload its candidates for the 2027 general elections, dismissing the Tanimu Turaki-led rival group as an unrecognised faction misleading its supporters.
Speaking during his media chat with journalists in Abuja on Thursday, Wike said claims by the Turaki-led group that it remained a legitimate faction of the PDP were false, insisting that INEC had only recognised the party leadership under his camp for the purpose of candidate nomination.
Responding to a question on reports that different groups within the PDP were still parading separate candidates despite political parties already uploading candidates to the INEC portal, Wike accused the media of giving undue legitimacy to the rival camp.
“They’re not parading; they[media] are the ones advertising them,” Wike said.
“I have told you there are different stages of 419. I have told you that several times. When this thing started, I told Mr. President that what Turaki was doing was collecting money from people, but it would backfire.”
According to the FCT minister, the test of legitimacy lies in whether INEC has granted a political party access to its nomination portal.
“Now INEC has given access codes to recognised political parties. Have they given him an access code? So which candidate is he going to submit?” he asked.
“But they have given us access codes. We are uploading our candidates, but they are not uploading theirs.”
Wike alleged that the rival group was deliberately keeping its supporters’ hopes alive despite lacking official recognition.
“They will continue to tell people, ‘Don’t worry, we have legal action. You will still be the candidate until the election.’ They will keep giving them that hope and sympathy, but they know that is not correct,” he said.
He maintained that there was no faction within the PDP, arguing that disagreement with the party leadership does not constitute a faction.
“The issue of faction is something you people in the media keep promoting. Somebody disagreeing with me does not constitute a faction.
“Which secretariat do they have? As a party, they don’t attend INEC meetings, yet you still call them a faction. I don’t understand.
“Those authorised to speak for the PDP are the recognised leadership of the party.”
Wike also dismissed speculation that former President Goodluck Jonathan could emerge as a presidential candidate through the rival camp, insisting that the recognised PDP leadership had already commenced the nomination process.
“They have given us the nomination forms to fill. I have seen my own, I have seen the president’s own. So which one are they going to give to whom?” he asked.
Speaking more broadly on the state of opposition politics ahead of the 2027 elections, Wike questioned whether Nigeria’s opposition parties were genuinely interested in providing an alternative government or merely pursuing personal ambitions.
“You said opposition parties. Are they really opposition parties? Everybody is pursuing his own personal ambition. If I can’t get the ticket in PDP, I’ll go to APC. Does that make you opposition?” he queried.
“If there is going to be a credible opposition to challenge the government, they must first put aside their selfish interests. That is how opposition works.”
The minister also criticised the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) over its legal battle with INEC, questioning why the party filed its registration suit at the Federal High Court in Lokoja instead of Abuja, where both the party and INEC have their headquarters.
“Where is INEC headquarters? Abuja. Where is NDC headquarters? Abuja. So what were they looking for in the Federal High Court in Lokoja?” Wike asked.
“If you had no hidden intention, why would you take such a sensitive matter to Lokoja? Had the case been filed in Abuja, interested parties could have joined the proceedings. Instead, they tried to do it in a way nobody would notice.”
While defending the judiciary’s right to review its own decisions in appropriate circumstances, Wike argued that courts could reverse judgments obtained through fraud or misrepresentation.
“If a judgment is a nullity or was obtained fraudulently through misrepresentation of facts, the court can reverse it,” he said.
However, he cautioned against attacking judges in the media whenever court decisions are unfavourable.
“Trying to abuse the judge will not help matters. There is an appeal process. We should stop practising law on television before even reading the judgment.”
Drawing from the PDP’s own leadership crisis in 2016 and 2017, Wike recalled how the party remained united despite what he described as interference by the then APC-led Federal Government during the leadership tussle between the Ali Modu Sheriff and Ahmed Makarfi factions.
“When we had problems in PDP, we fought it within the party and eventually won at the Supreme Court. We didn’t abandon the party.
“You don’t solve internal party problems by accusing the ruling party every time. Put your house in order first,” he said.
Using a football analogy, Wike argued that political parties must comply with electoral rules just as football teams are expected to field only eligible players.
“If Germany fields unregistered players against Argentina and Argentina challenges the result, will you blame Argentina? The fault lies with the team that fielded unregistered players.
“Political parties know their opponents are watching for mistakes. If you make errors, they will take advantage of them. That is politics,” he added.
