By Adesakin Adefemi
African Democratic Congress presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar has hit back at FCT Minister Nyesom Wike over remarks that the ADC would not secure up to 10 percent of votes in Rivers State in the 2027 general elections. Atiku said Rivers voters are intelligent enough to make their own choices.
Wike, former Rivers governor, made the comment on Saturday during a luncheon for candidates of the Rainbow Coalition for the 2027 elections in the state. He said no other party would win the governorship election except the candidate backed by his coalition.
Reacting through his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku said no individual, regardless of influence or access to federal power, can dictate how an entire state will vote. He dismissed Wike’s prediction as an attempt to claim ownership of Rivers electorate.
“Rivers votes are not your property. The people of Rivers State are not political slaves. They are intelligent, independent-minded Nigerians who will make their choices based on the realities confronting them and the future they desire for their children,” Atiku’s statement read.
Atiku added that it was amusing and disturbing that Wike now speaks as though Rivers voters are his personal property to be allocated at will. He said such comments expose a mindset that treats citizens as subjects rather than participants in democracy.
The former vice president also said Wike’s remarks expose growing panic within the Tinubu camp over the emergence of a formidable opposition coalition under the ADC. He argued that the minister’s focus on election arithmetic shows a shift from governance to campaigning.
According to Atiku, Nigerians are more concerned about the soaring cost of living, worsening insecurity, and economic hardship than the political predictions of a minister. He said the public wants solutions to real challenges rather than declarations about vote share.
Wike had stated that Atiku and the ADC would not secure up to 10 percent of the total votes cast in Rivers in the 2027 presidential election. He also insisted that only the governorship candidate agreed upon by his Rainbow Coalition would win in the state.
Atiku’s response signals an early clash between the ADC and Wike’s political structure in Rivers as parties begin positioning for 2027. With the electorate watching, the contest over votes in the South state is shaping up to be one of the key political battles ahead.
