FCT poll: Wike free to back any candidate — APC

The All Progressives Congress (APC) has defended the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, saying he is constitutionally entitled to support any candidate of his choice, regardless of party affiliation.

Speaking on Morning Brief on Channels Television on Monday, APC National Publicity Secretary Felix Morka addressed concerns over Wike’s support for APC candidates during the February 21 FCT Area Council elections.

Morka said Wike, as a Nigerian citizen, enjoys constitutional rights that allow him to campaign for any candidate or political party.

His remarks followed controversy surrounding the minister’s role in the polls, where the APC secured victory in five of the six area councils.

The debate intensified after two chairmanship candidates of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) — Julius Adamu in Bwari and Zadna Dantani in the Abuja Municipal Area Council — withdrew from the race and publicly endorsed their APC opponents after interventions linked to Wike.

The PDP’s National Working Committee criticised the withdrawals as “shameful” and “anti-democratic,” alleging they were induced without party approval and amounted to a forced consensus.

Wike’s open backing of APC candidates has fuelled wider discussions on party loyalty, cross-carpeting and the limits of political allegiance in Nigeria’s multi-party system.

Morka maintained that the minister’s actions reflect the exercise of fundamental rights guaranteed by the 1999 Constitution rather than a coordinated APC strategy.

Meanwhile, Bola Ahmed Tinubu praised Wike’s role in the party’s victories in the FCT elections and recent by-elections in Rivers State.