Arise Television presenter Rufai Oseni has launched a scathing criticism of Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister Nyesom Wike, accusing him of political hypocrisy for embracing the All Progressives Congress (APC) after previously describing the ruling party as having “stage four cancer.”
In a recent on-air commentary that has circulated widely on social media, Oseni referenced Wike’s past remarks and contrasted them with the minister’s current active role in mobilising support for President Bola Tinubu’s 2027 re-election bid. “They gave you minister because you betrayed PDP, same you called APC cancer and now you in bed with cancer,” Oseni said, according to clips of the segment.
The remarks come after Wike, who remains a member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), welcomed his inclusion in the APC Presidential Campaign Council. The former Rivers State governor has been named a coordinator for the campaign in Rivers State and the FCT, and has publicly expressed readiness to deliver both for Tinubu.
In 2021, while still governor of Rivers State, Wike firmly rejected suggestions that he would defect to the APC. In an interview with BBC Pidgin, he used a medical analogy to dismiss the idea: “If I have malaria, do I go looking for cancer?” He went further to describe the APC as suffering from “stage four cancer,” arguing that the party’s problems were more severe than those facing the PDP at the time. He insisted he would remain in the PDP to address its internal challenges.
Those comments have resurfaced as Wike, now a key ally of Tinubu’s administration, takes on a prominent role in the APC’s re-election machinery while retaining his PDP membership. Critics, including Oseni, have pointed to the shift as evidence of transactional politics.
Oseni, known for his confrontational interviewing style on Arise TV’s Morning Show, has repeatedly questioned Wike’s political consistency in recent months. He has previously suggested that the minister’s manoeuvres are partly driven by longer-term ambitions, including a possible presidential bid around 2031 when power is expected to return to the South.
Wike has defended his support for Tinubu, arguing that he is acting in the national interest and that he has the mandate of a faction within the PDP. He has also challenged APC governors to deliver their states for the president in 2027, while boasting of his capacity to secure victories in Rivers and the FCT.
The exchange highlights ongoing tensions in Nigeria’s fluid political landscape ahead of the 2027 general elections, where cross-party alliances and shifting loyalties have become increasingly common. Videos of Oseni’s latest broadside against Wike continued to gain traction on social media platforms on Thursday.
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