By Remi Johnson
The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Mr Nyesom Wike, on Tuesday in Abuja declared that the 2027 presidential election would be an easy contest for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, describing the opposition as “crippled and depleted.”
Wike made the remarks during a press briefing while defending the administration’s commitment to allowing democratic processes to operate without undue interference.
According to him, the government should be given credit for allowing electoral and democratic processes to take their natural course.
“When they lose, they claim the government manipulated the process; when they win, they show off their might. It does not work that way.
“From what I have seen, this government allows processes to run their own way, and they must be given credit for that,” Wike said.
The minister, reflecting on the 2023 general election, said the contest was considerably tougher and more uncertain for the incumbent president.
“2023 was a tough election for him. Nobody knew what the government at the time was trying to do, and even governors were afraid.
“But 2027 will be different. To remove a government, you need a strong, vibrant opposition that has spent over four years planning, not one that is constantly looking for a party to join,” he stated.
Wike also criticised opposition parties and political figures, particularly those associated with the African Democratic Congress (ADC) and previous Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential contenders.
He pointed to what he described as internal divisions within the opposition and their performances in recent governorship elections, stressing that the dynamics of state-level elections differ significantly from those of a presidential contest.
The minister also recalled the role played by the G5 governors in the 2023 presidential election, arguing that without such political support, opposition figures would struggle to mount a serious national challenge.
“Governorship elections rely on local variables, but a national election is a completely different ballgame.If it is this 2027 election against Bola Ahmed Tinubu, forget it. It’s over,” he declared.
Addressing concerns over the state of the economy, Wike urged Nigerians to assess leadership based on concrete actions taken to address challenges rather than emotional sentiments.
“Leadership is defined by the steps you take to solve problems.When someone identifies a problem and takes concrete action to fix it, that is the effort people should appreciate,”