Umahi rejects reported Rainbow Coalition plans in Ebonyi
Works Minister David Umahi has said Ebonyi remains aligned with the All Progressives Congress and its candidates, rejecting reports of a Rainbow Coalition in the state. His comments come amid disagreements involving FCT Minister Nyesom Wike and APC governors over political arrangements ahead of the 2027 elections.
Minister of Works David Umahi has rejected reports that a Rainbow Coalition is being formed in Ebonyi State, saying the state remains aligned with the All Progressives Congress and its candidates. Umahi spoke on Friday, September 25, during an inspection of the Calabar-Abuja Superhighway in Benue State. His comments came amid disagreements between Minister of the Federal Capital Territory Nyesom Wike and some APC governors over political arrangements ahead of the 2027 elections.
The Rainbow Coalition is a multi-party platform promoted by Wike to mobilise support for President Bola Tinubu’s re-election in 2027. Wike has said the platform is separate from the APC and allows politicians from different parties to support Tinubu while retaining freedom over other elections. Asked about his relationship with Wike and reports of a similar arrangement in Ebonyi, Umahi said Wike had not informed him of any candidates in the state.
He added that such candidates would not form part of their political relationship and stated that there was no Rainbow Coalition in Ebonyi. Umahi also repeated his criticism of the Peoples Democratic Party, saying he left because he believed the party had failed to recognise the interests of the South-East. He said people were free to campaign in Ebonyi but warned against hate speech and attempts to create disorder.
The minister linked his support for Tinubu to the Federal Government’s infrastructure programme and rejected claims that he had directed federal projects disproportionately to the South-East. He said project distribution could be assessed through the published list of ongoing projects and maintained that the region would not be last. During the inspection, Umahi said Section Two of the highway covered about 173.6 kilometres and had a contract value of about N683bn.
He directed contractors not to demolish buildings along the existing alignment until a review was completed and ordered work to accelerate while engineers addressed issues around the Ado Bridge.
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