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2027: Wike Predicts ‘Larger Rainbow Coalition’ for Tinubu, Speaks on Adeleke’s Visit (Video)
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The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Barr Nyesom Wike, has said the political realignment ahead of the 2027 general elections will produce a larger national coalition in support of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
Wike spoke on Friday in Abuja during an inspection of ongoing projects in the Federal Capital Territory, while reacting to the recent visit of Osun State Governor-elect, Ademola Adeleke, to President Tinubu.
The minister said Adeleke’s engagement with the President was an indication of the emergence of what he described as a “larger Rainbow Coalition” in support of Tinubu ahead of the 2027 presidential election.
Wike dismissed the description of the emerging political alignment as an opposition matter, arguing that the current political landscape did not have a clearly defined leading opposition party.
“When you say opposition, I’ve told you I don’t know what you call opposition, as far as there is no opposition now,” Wike said.
According to him, Adeleke, despite securing his ticket for the Osun governorship election on the platform of the Accord Party, remains a member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), adding that the recent political engagement was aimed at strengthening support for Tinubu.
“What happened last night is meeting to rebuild a larger Rainbow Coalition. And he (Adeleke) is supporting Mr President. He’s in a different party; I’m supporting Mr President, and I’m in a different party. So, it’s a larger Rainbow Coalition,” he said.
Wike said more political developments should be expected in the coming weeks, predicting that additional politicians would align with Tinubu.
“And the next few weeks, watch what is going to happen. You will see a larger Rainbow Coalition in this country supporting Mr President,” he said.
The FCT minister also dismissed claims by members of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) that the party and other opposition groups played a decisive role in Adeleke’s electoral victory.
“All those ADC who are talking about ‘they helped Adeleke to win,’ they just wanted to go and harvest where they never planted,” Wike said.
He maintained that Adeleke was now supporting Tinubu, adding that the development had strengthened the President’s position ahead of 2027.
Wike further described the forthcoming election as one that would be easy for the President’s camp, saying the emerging political alignments had significantly altered the opposition landscape.
Reacting to questions on how former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi might perceive his engagement with Adeleke, Wike said their reactions were of little concern to him.
“I have told you when you say ‘leading opposition,’ I’ve told you that there’s no opposition,” he said.
“What you have are people who are just trying to see whether they can be relevant.”
He argued that the PDP, which ordinarily should constitute the major opposition party, had been weakened by its internal crisis.
“Ordinarily, it should have been PDP, but because of the crisis we’ve had, and so you can’t see a formidable party that you will call the leading opposition party,” he said.
Wike said his priority was to ensure victory for his political camp, adding that political contests were not about making opponents comfortable.
Earlier, the minister said the project inspection was part of efforts to ensure that key infrastructure earmarked for completion this year were delivered on schedule.
He inspected the N5 Extension in Life Camp, being executed by Julius Berger, and expressed satisfaction with the progress of work.
Wike said the project was expected to be completed and handed over in December.
He also inspected the N1 Road project being executed by Arab Contractors, describing the quality of work as high and confirming that it was also scheduled for handover in December.
The minister subsequently inspected the IBB International Golf Club, which is undergoing rehabilitation following intervention by President Tinubu.
Wike said the facility had become particularly important to members of the diplomatic community who had complained about the prolonged closure of the club.
“That this golf course must be ready and be reopened by December. So we are giving it to Julius Berger to ensure that everything is done. And by December this year, the golf course will be reopened,” he said.
He explained that Julius Berger was re-engaged because the company originally constructed the facility and had the requisite knowledge of its design and standards.
According to him, physical completion is expected by November, allowing the club to reopen officially in December.
The minister said the golf club was shut following an internal crisis, which led to the appointment of a caretaker committee headed by the President of the Court of Appeal.
He commended the committee for its efforts in resolving the crisis and facilitating the rehabilitation of the facility.
Wike, however, said the government would not continue to bankroll the club after its reopening.
He said the management must generate sufficient revenue to sustain its operations and maintenance without relying on public funds.
“I would believe, this time around, that when this is done, they should be able to raise funds by themselves to run this place. The government should not use public funds to come back to do it,” he said.
The minister assured that the FCT Administration would continue to facilitate payments to the contractor to keep the rehabilitation on schedule, stressing that the December reopening deadline remained firm.
A 58-year-old Nigerian cleric, Bishop Taiwo Michael Fakunle, has been shot dead at his residence in Kensington, Johannesburg, South Africa, sparking outrage among Nigerians in the country.
Fakunle was reportedly killed on Friday, September 4, 2026, after two suspects allegedly gained access to his residence and opened fire on him.
According to preliminary information released by the Nigerian Citizens Association South Africa (NICASA), the bishop was shot more than seven times in the attack.
NICASA President, Rev. Frank Onyekwelu, described the killing as a “horrific and senseless act of violence,” saying it had left Fakunle’s family, church community and Nigerians in South Africa devastated.
Fakunle, who hailed from Iye in Ilejemeje Local Government Area of Ekiti State, was described as a valued member of the Nigerian community.
“The continued loss of Nigerian lives through violent crime is deeply disturbing and cannot be allowed to become normal or treated as just another statistic,” Onyekwelu said.
NICASA called on the South African Police Service (SAPS) and other relevant authorities to conduct a thorough, transparent and credible investigation into the killing.
The association said a murder case had been opened at Jeppe Police Station and that investigations were ongoing.
“We demand a thorough and credible investigation that will establish exactly what happened, identify all those responsible, apprehend the perpetrators and ensure that they are brought before the courts to face the full might of the law,” Onyekwelu said.
He said the Consulate General of Nigeria in Johannesburg had been informed of the incident and urged Nigerian diplomatic authorities to remain engaged with South African officials and closely monitor the investigation.
According to NICASA, the association would pursue justice through all legitimate and lawful channels while ensuring that the case did not become another unresolved killing involving a Nigerian national.
“The family deserves answers. The Nigerian community deserves justice. Bishop Taiwo deserves justice,” Onyekwelu said.
He also appealed to Nigerians and community leaders across South Africa to remain calm and law-abiding, warning against retaliatory attacks or taking the law into their own hands.
NICASA extended its condolences to Fakunle’s immediate family, relatives, friends, church members, fellow Ekiti indigenes and the wider Nigerian community.
“Enough of the killings. Nigerian lives matter. Justice for Bishop Taiwo Michael Fakunle,” the association said.
Reigning Miss Austria beauty queen Lucia Sisic has died at the age of 22 after living with a lifelong heart condition.
Mission Austria, which organises the Miss Austria and Mister Austria beauty pageants, announced her death on Monday, describing it as a moment of “great shock and deep sorrow”.
No cause of death has been confirmed.
Sisic was crowned Miss Austria in 2024 and remained the reigning titleholder because no subsequent contest has yet taken place.
In a tribute, Mission Austria said Sisic would be remembered as a “wonderful young woman” and offered its condolences to her family, friends and those close to her.
Sisic had previously spoken publicly about her heart condition and the medical treatment she received throughout her life.
In 2024, she thanked the doctors and medical staff who cared for her as a child, saying their efforts had helped her overcome many difficult moments.
Sisic underwent seven operations related to her condition during her lifetime. She told Austrian media that her first operation took place shortly after she was born.
She also described how her condition affected her childhood, saying she was unable to participate in activities such as school sports weeks.
Despite her health challenges, Sisic pursued her career and became Miss Austria in 2024.
Herzkinder Österreich, an Austrian charity supporting children with heart conditions, also paid tribute to her.
The organisation described her death as untimely and said she had left the world “far too soon” at just 22.
The charity remembered Sisic as a warm-hearted and joyful young woman who had shown courage while living with a congenital heart condition.
Mission Austria said Sisic would always remain part of the Miss Austria family.
(BBC News)
More flights are expected to be delayed in the United Kingdom (UK) after a technical problem with the country’s air traffic control system led to more than 2,000 cancellations.
A total of 291 flights were cancelled on Wednesday after 1,750 were cancelled on Tuesday, according to aviation analytics firm Cirium. Tens of thousands of passengers have been affected by the disruption.
National Air Traffic Services (NATS), the UK’s air traffic control provider, blamed the disruption on a technical glitch. Its chief executive, Martin Rolfe, apologised and said a full investigation would be carried out.
He admitted that resolving the problem had taken “longer than hoped”.
Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband described the outage as “unacceptable”, while Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander summoned Rolfe to explain what happened.
The disruption affected several major UK airports, including Heathrow, Gatwick, Manchester and Birmingham. Airports in Ireland also reported disruption.
At Heathrow, departures were initially paused on Tuesday before operations resumed and then faced further disruption later in the day.
Heathrow said its operations were recovering on Wednesday but warned passengers of further delays because aircraft and crew needed to be repositioned.
Gatwick also said flights had resumed but warned that it would take time for operations to return fully to normal.
Passengers have been advised to check directly with their airlines before travelling to airports. Heathrow said passengers should only travel if they have a confirmed flight.
The technical fault affected NATS’ flight data processing system. Rolfe said it was not the same system that failed during a major disruption in 2023.
However, the latest incident is the third technical problem experienced by NATS in three years. A computer shutdown in 2023 caused widespread disruption affecting around 700,000 passengers, while another outage in 2025 resulted in about 150 cancellations.
Airlines including Ryanair and Wizz Air have called for changes to NATS. Wizz Air UK managing director Yvonne Moynihan said the company needed to consider whether NATS was “fit for purpose”.
Despite the disruption, Rolfe defended the UK’s air traffic control system, saying it remained one of the best in the world.
However, former NATS air traffic control manager Doug Maclean said repeated failures were undermining the system’s reputation.
Even though the technical issue has been resolved, passengers are expected to face further disruption because of the backlog of flights, aircraft and crew.
NATS said it was working to restore normal operations as quickly as possible.
(BBC News)
Nigerian Bishop Shot Dead in Johannesburg
SAD! Reigning Miss Austria Beauty Queen Dies At 22
More Flights Delayed As UK Air Traffic Control Problem Causes disruption
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