The Wike question has now moved beyond politics. It is a question of public office, conflict of interest and party discipline.
Nyesom Wike is a serving FCT Minister. He says he remains a PDP member. He is also openly mobilising for President Tinubu’s re-election through the Rainbow Coalition. Wike’s position is that the coalition supports Tinubu for President but remains free to support non-APC candidates in governorship and legislative elections. (BusinessDay NG)
That is not an assumption. It is Wike’s publicly stated political position.
Now consider what is happening.
Tinubu’s official campaign council has serving public officials occupying important campaign positions. The Minister of Information, Mohammed Idris, is Coordinating Director for Media and Strategic Communication. The Defence Minister, Christopher Musa, is Secretary of the Security and Intelligence Directorate, while the Minister of State for Defence, Bello Matawalle, is his deputy. (State House)
More troubling are the appointments involving independent public institutions.
Zacch Adedeji, Chairman of the Nigeria Revenue Service, is Deputy Director of Fundraising.
Bisoye Coker-Odusote, Director-General of NIMC, is Director of Data Management.
Tanimu Yakubu, Director-General of the Budget Office of the Federation, is Secretary, Finance/Treasurer. (Premium Times Nigeria)
These are not ceremonial overlaps.
The head of the federal revenue institution is involved in raising campaign money.
The head of the national identity institution is responsible for campaign data.
The head of the Federal Budget Office is involved in campaign finance.
The Defence Minister is sitting in the campaign’s Security and Intelligence structure.
That is an extraordinary concentration of sensitive public responsibilities inside a partisan campaign organisation.
And this is where Wike’s case becomes even more difficult to explain.
The Constitution’s Fifth Schedule, Part I, paragraph 1, provides:
“A public officer shall not put himself in a position where his personal interest conflicts with his duties and responsibilities.” (PLACNG)
The Code of Conduct for Ministers and Special Advisers is even more direct:
“We shall not misuse our office for politically partisan purpose.” (Segunda Wodu)
Supporting Tinubu does not automatically violate either provision.
But running or actively coordinating a presidential re-election operation while serving as a Minister is plainly a matter that falls within the conflict-of-interest and partisan-use provisions and deserves an authoritative determination.
Then comes the PDP issue.
Wike says he remains a PDP member. Yet he is mobilising for the re-election of a President whose party is the APC, while his Rainbow Coalition is being described as capable of supporting candidates who may contest against APC candidates in other elections.
That is the point at which “I support Tinubu” becomes an inadequate description of what is happening.
Wike is not merely expressing a preference.
He is building a political structure.
He is mobilising for a presidential re-election.
He is doing so while serving in the Federal Executive Council.
And he says he remains a member of the opposition PDP.
Whether that amounts to anti-party activity under the PDP Constitution is a matter for the PDP’s disciplinary machinery. But pretending there is no party contradiction is difficult to sustain.
The public-office question is separate.
Can a serving Minister take an operational role in a presidential campaign while remaining in office?
The Code of Conduct Bureau should answer that question formally. The Attorney-General should state the applicable legal position. And the PDP should state clearly how it treats a member who is campaigning for another party’s presidential candidate while his own party contests other elections.
This is not about denying Wike his political rights.
It is about keeping government office, government institutions and political campaigns within their proper boundaries.
Because if the head of the tax authority can raise campaign money, the head of the national identity agency can run campaign data, the Budget Office DG can manage campaign finance, Defence Ministers can occupy campaign security positions, and an FCT Minister can openly build a presidential campaign coalition while remaining in the opposition party, then Nigeria deserves to know:
Where exactly is the line between government and campaign?
That line should be settled before the election, not after it.
Solomon Dalung Esq.
