By Charles Igbo
Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, has put his Party, the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, on notice of the trouble that would soon engulf it.
The PDP has been engulfed in a major crisis since after the Presidential Primaries during which former Vice President Atiku Abubakar beat Wike to a second place. It worsened when Wike, also, lost the Vice Presidential slot, which he had very much looked forward to, to his Delta State counterpart, Dr Ifeanyi Okowa.
Wike is leading a faction of the PDP which has divorced itself from the mainstream PDP, and therefore, not participating in any Party activities, including the Presidential Campaign. All efforts from within and outside the Party to resolve the crises has been unsuccessfully as both Parties, especially Wike and company, stuck to their guns.
The Wike Group, which includes four other Governors- Samuel Ortom, Benue, Okezie Ikpeazu, Abia, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, Enugu, Seyi Makinde, Oyo – and a number of Stakeholders, are insisting on the stepping down of the Party’s National Chairman, Dr Iyorchia Ayu, from office. Aside from holding Ayu responsible for Wike’s loss, they want him succeeded by a Southerner, positing that it is against the Party’s Constitution for both the National Chairman and the Presidential Candidate to come from the same region of the Country – the North.
They have said they will never work for the Presidential success of Atiku, nor vote for him. In the past weeks, they have been stressing that they would vote for another Presidential Candidate of their choice. Wike and Ortom in particular. A few days ago, Ortom endorsed the Presidential Candidate of the Labour Party, LP, Peter Obi.
When the five Governors left for London, a couple of days ago, as has been usual for them in the past few months, tension mounted, and so did wild speculations. It was said that they went to London to make a final decision on which Presidential candidate to back; that they are divided into two -three for the Presidential Candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Bola Tinubu, and two for Obi; that they have held a meeting, in London, with Tinubu and reached an agreement with him. The latter was especially promoted by Special Assistant to President Muhammadu Buhari on Digital Communication, Bashir Ahmad, who said the five rebellious PDP Governors, have made a “fantastically positive” offer to Tinubu which would seal victory for him in 2023.
But on Friday, 30th December, on return from London, Wike put a lie to all the speculations. He said all the publications, including Ahmad’s statement, were fabrications, a bundle of lies.
He spoke while flagging off the construction of a new road in the State.
He said there was no such meeting with Tinubu. He said there was no agreement with Tinubu. He said the crisis in the PDP is nothing compared to what is to come. “They say there is problem in the Party, there is no trouble. This is just an introduction ( to trouble).”, Wike said.
He dared the PDP leadership to expel him from the Party, and see if it would survive. He recalled how then President Obasanjo knelt down to beg Atiku to allow him a second term, and agreed to all Atiku’s conditions, including the sack of Chief Tony Anenih as Minister for Works, as well as dropping him from the Presidential Campaign Council. Wike, also, accused Journalists of behaving as if they are in the contest for the Presidency.
He said he never granted any interview to the BBC. “I did not”, he emphasized, otherwise, he asked, where are the pictures, where is the video.
Wike: “You know these days, we don’t have Journalists. We have Press men. You can see people not being able to give correct information. You see Newspapers that are now running election. You see TV Houses now standing for election.”
Wike said he was not worried about anything, and asked the PDP to leave him and his Governor-allies alone and focus on their electioneering campaign.
“To go and sleep, you are worried. Still you tell Nigerians you don’t bother. They say I held a conversation with BBC. Where is the picture, where is the video?
“You know these days, we don’t have Journalists. What we have are Press men. You can see people not being able to give correct information. You see Newspapers that are now running election. You see TV Houses now standing for election.
“Wike had interview with BBC. Wike said we had a deal with so-so and so. Meanwhile, there is no video, no voice anything.
“And, some of you, you waste your time to listen to such things. Don’t you know that when I want to do something, I will do it. Do you need to speculate? You don’t need to speculate.”
Wike: “They say there is problem. There is no trouble. What we have is an introduction to the problem that will come. So, my dear people, don’t bother yourselves. They say we have meeting with so-so and so. So, what is their problem.”
Wike: “Assuming we had a meeting, has Atiku not been meeting with APC Governors? Ask him. As he is in Dubai, don’t we know what is going on? So, why do you bother about us, G-5?
“You said you will win without us. Leave me alone. Leave Seyi Makinde alone. Leave Ortom alone. Leave Ikpeazu alone. Leave Ugwuanyi alone. Focus on your problems.”
Wike: “So, my dear people, I just want to tell you that whatever decision, I will tell you. And I cannot take any decision without taking advice from you. Is that not? Is that not?”
Wike: “So, please, allow these Newspapers who (sic) are standing for election. All of us know the Parties they are supporting. All of us know the candidates they are supporting. They cannot come out to tell Nigerians the simple truth. Every time, they are telling Nigerians lies upon lies, upon lies upon lies.”
Wike: “I am not one who will see somebody and I will hide. Hide for who? Who is that person that will threaten me? You say you will sack me. Go ahead and sack me. I am not worried. You that is (sic) sacking, you are worried. Me that will be sacked, am I worried? Try and see how you will survive it.”
I went to London to enjoy myself and my family
“I just went to enjoy myself and my family. Don’t you see how I am looking? Don’t you like how I am looking? If you check their BP (Blood Pressure), it is very high. Mine is like a kid’s. Bring a Doctor now, check my BP, you will see. But their own us rising high and high everyday.
“So, just please focus on what we are doing. Forget all these their rumour mongering.
“Everyday, Tinubu has settled this, Obi has settled this, Obasanjo has done this. So, you can see people, instead of them to focus on their their campaign, am I contesting election? You that is (sic) contesting, go and focus on your campaign. Go and tell the people what you will do when elected.
“But my problem, and that is why Nigerians forget easily, and I want to challenge some of these people who think they can deceive me and deceive you. When they want to tell people the truth, tell them the truth.
“They have been circulating on Arise Television, one of those contesting election, that Wike said I am a Party man, whoever wins, I will support, I will support. I did not deny that.”
Obasanjo sacked Anenih as Minister and removed him from PCC to please Atiku
“Wike: “In 2003, when President Olusegun Obasanjo wanted to run for a second tenure – a whole President wanted to run for a second – he knelt down before his Vice, and said, ‘my Vice, please, allow me to run.’
“You know one of the conditions he (Atiku) gave him? That Tony Anenih must be sacked as the Minister for Works, and Tony Anenih must not be in the Presidential Campaign Council.
“Obasanjo obliged and sacked Tony Anenih as the Minister for Works, and removed him from the Presidential Campaign Council. This is a President, (and) his own his own Vice giving him condition. A retired General knelt down and was given conditions.
“We (G-5) are not even doing that, we are not saying sack this one, we are only saying that the constitution of our Party must be respected, based on what the National Chairman said, and what you (Atiku) told me in my house.”
For the records, Obasanjo and Atiku’s second tenure in office was not cordial. It was rough. Obasanjo rendered him redundant, sacked most of his Aides, called him corrupt, and tried to remove him from office when Atiku publicly began to fund another Party, ACN, Bola Tinubu’s baby. He later decamped to the Party on leaving office, and became its Presidential Candidate. Atiku was defeated by President Goodluck Jonathan.
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