By Onyeanya Ebere Immaculata
FCT Minister Nyesom Wike has said Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara is free to defect to the All Progressives Congress (APC), without his consent, but warned that joining the ruling party does not guarantee success in the 2027 elections.
Wike made the remarks Monday during his monthly media chat in Port Harcourt, responding to Fubara’s recent defection from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), to the APC.
Fubara reportedly met President Bola Tinubu in Abuja in early December and said his move aimed to give “full support” to the President ahead of 2027.
The minister described the defection as expected, noting that several lawmakers and council chairmen in Rivers State had already joined the APC.
However, he stressed that political alignment does not automatically translate into an electoral mandate.
“People think that once you stand with the ruling party, it gives you an automatic ticket. No, it doesn’t. You have to work and earn it,” Wike said.
He added that many politicians who previously accused him of supporting the APC have themselves defected, making Fubara’s move unsurprising.
