We deployed strategy, not rigging against Obi in 2023 — Wike
Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Barr. Nyesom Wike, has dismissed allegations that he rigged the 2023 presidential election
The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Barr. Nyesom Wike, has dismissed allegations that he rigged the 2023 presidential election in the South-South in favour of President Bola Tinubu against the then Labour Party candidate, Mr Peter Obi.
Wike, who spoke in Abuja on Wednesday while on an inspection tour of ongoing infrastructure projects, described the claim as a baseless narrative propagated mainly on social media.
His clarification followed criticism of his remarks on TVC’s Journalists’ Hangout, where he said his G5 group of governors strategically allowed Obi to win in the South-South.
Critics and opposition figures had interpreted the comment as an admission of voter manipulation.
Reacting, Wike said the results were a product of calculated electoral strategy aimed at neutralising political threats, not illegal manipulation.
He dismissed suggestions that an individual could single-handedly dictate outcomes across thousands of polling units.
“People who don’t understand, how can they say I rigged the election? How would I have done it? So, I just took the result sheets, wrote it, and gave it to INEC?” he queried.
According to him, social media projections do not reflect the realities of Nigeria’s vast voting infrastructure.
“I’ve always said social media does not win elections. You have about 176,000 polling units, and probably you have seen 300 polling units, and then you rush to the conclusion that so-and-so has won,” he said.
Wike noted that despite the public outcry, opposition parties failed to substantiate claims of rigging at the tribunal.
He explained that in the South-South, traditionally a stronghold of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar was identified as the primary threat to the G5 coalition.
To check Atiku, he said, the group adopted a strategy of routing votes to Obi in specific areas to split the opposition base and suppress Atiku’s margin.
“We felt that Atiku was more of a factor in that election than Obi. So our strategy was to make sure that you vote for Obi to win in order to deny Atiku the votes,” he said.
Wike dismissed Obi’s national surge as largely cosmetic and driven by social media popularity.
He argued that rigging an election without grassroots popularity was impossible.
“When you talk about rigging, you cannot rig an election where you are not popular. If you try that, then you see what will happen to you. People will resist it,” he said.
The Minister urged analysts and the public to focus on electoral mechanics and verified facts rather than online commentary.
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