The political feud between the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister, Nyesom Wike, and the National Secretary of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Ajibola Basiru, escalated into a scorched-earth confrontation on Monday.
In a stinging rebuttal, Basiru challenged Wike to abandon his cabinet role if he cannot let go of his grip on the local politics of Rivers State. The clash highlights a deepening rift within the ruling party’s orbit over the ongoing power struggle between Wike and his successor, Governor Siminalayi Fubara.
The exchange began during Wike’s “thank-you” visit to Oyigbo Local Government Area. Infuriated by Basiru’s recent public support for Governor Fubara, Wike accused the APC scribe of being motivated by the state’s massive federal allocations.
“Let me warn those who come to Rivers State, because you have heard that we have N600bn, you come here, you collect, and you open your mouth to talk anyhow. I say it here, take this message to your National Secretary, leave Rivers State alone. Go and ask those who have done it before. Please don’t take our support for Mr President for granted. You have to be careful with the statements you make,” Wike declared.
Responding in a statement he personally signed, Basiru dismissed the Minister’s threats as the antics of an outsider. He pointedly noted that since Wike remains officially a member of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), he has no standing to dictate the movements or statements of the APC’s National Secretary.
”My advice to him is that he should resign as Minister and face his obsession with Rivers politics,” Basiru stated.
He further questioned Wike’s “temerity” to interfere in the internal administrative decisions of the APC: “From my record, he isn’t a member of APC. I don’t see which authority or temerity he has to be dabbling into APC affairs. I am the National Secretary of APC and I don’t see any basis for him to be making comments about my activities either in Rivers State or in any part of Nigeria.”
Basiru also took strong exception to Wike’s insinuation that his interest in Rivers State was financial. He reminded the Minister of his history as a pro-democracy activist who cannot be intimidated by political “bullies.”
“I take strong exceptions to his allusion that I am interested in the N600 billion allocations of Rivers State. My records of service are those of integrity and commitment to service. I am not an opportunist and I have never shied away from taking principled positions on any matter, no matter whose ox is gored. I am one of the young Nigerians that confronted military dictatorship. I can’t be bullied by anybody, no matter how highly placed. My records as National Secretary are above board and I can’t be queried by somebody who isn’t a member of APC,” Basiru insisted.
The APC scribe clarified that his mandate is national, rejecting Wike’s suggestion that he should confine his activities to his home state of Osun.
”As the National Secretary of the party, my activities aren’t confined to Osun State, contrary to his wrong impression. I am the head of the National Secretariat of the APC. So, he has no locus whatsoever to engage me in any political activity that concerns the APC until he joins the party,” he concluded.
This open confrontation underscores the precarious nature of Wike’s position as a PDP member serving in an APC cabinet, especially as the 2027 political cycle begins to heat up.
 Minister, Nyesom Wike, and the National Secretary of the All Progressives){kind=link}