By Gideon Njoku

“Who in PDP Will Discipline Me?”

In an interview with Channels Television Friday night, Nyesom Wike, Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT,  threw a challenge at his  colleagues in the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.

Speaking with the TV Station’s Seun Okinbaloye, Wike revealed, apparently, referring that there is no Peoples Democratic Party’s Governor that did not lobby for a position in President Bola Tinubu Government.

Wike, the immediate past Governor of Rivers  State, worked strongly against his Party’s  Presidential Candidate, Atiku Abubakar, in preference to the Presidential Candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC, now President Bola Tinubu. He said they all lobbied for ministerial positions for one person or the other.

Wike had aspired to be the PDP Candidate, but he was beaten to a second position by Atiku, who went on to reject Wike as his running mate, in preference to the then Delta State Governor, Dr Ifeanyi Okowo.

Angered by Atiku’s snub, Wike, along with four of his Governor-colleagues, worked publicly and seriously against their Party’s Candidate, Atiku.

For his contributions to then Candidate Tinubu’s victory, Wike was rewarded with the high profile position of the FCT Minister.

Asked if it was not appropriate to call him a mole in PDP, he said he was clear from the beginning that he would work for  Tinubu.  In his defence, he said he wrote to the PDP – from Ward to LGA, State and National Levels – that President Tinubu had offered him a Ministerial appointment. One by one, he said, all of them endorsed the offer.

He then thundered: “Who in the PDP did not try to nominate names for President Tinubu’s appointments. Yes, they did. Let them come forward and say they did not do it.”

Wike does not, therefore, see his position in an APC Government as anti-party and went on to reveal that almost all of them wanted a piece of the cake – to be offered a position in President Tinubu’s  Administration.

Reminded that PDP had set-up a Disciplinary Committee which already invited him, Wike chuckled, and asked: “Discipline who? Who will discipline who now?”

Asker if he was not an outsider in the PDP, Wike quipped: “No Governor in the PDP, no one born of a woman can claim that I am an outsider in the Party.”

By Gideon Njoku

The Minister of  the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has revealed that the Governor of Edo State, Godwin Obaseki, visited him two times to solicit support for Asue Ighodalo to win the Edo 2024 Governorship Election.

Ighodalo is the Candidate of  Obaseki’s Party, Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in the Edo September 21 Governorship Election. He was Obaseki’s preferred Candidate among others, including his Deputy, Philip Shaibu.

Ordinarily, Obaseki  soliciting for Wike’s support should be taken for granted. Apart from, supposedly, both men being members of the same Party, Wike led Obaseki’s Governorship Campaign about four years ago against, especially, the APC, and secured him his second term in office.

But for reasons not yet made public by either of them, they have since fallen apart and became arch political enemies.

While Wike dubs Obaseki “ungrateful”, Obaseki thinks Wike is power-drunk and brash.

Not a few people were, therefore, surprised when Wike, in an interview Friday night with Channel Television’s Seun Okinbaloye, revealed that Obaseki visited him two times with Ighodalo to seek support for Candidate Ighodalo.

Asked by Okinbaloye what his response was, he answered swiftly that he said no; that he turned down Obaseki’s request; that he told them he would not lift a finger to help.

And asked if he would then support the Candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Senator Monday Okpebholo, Wike fired back: “Am I a member of the APC? I will remain neutral.” And noted that after helping Obaseki to become Governor, he was rewarded with insults.

Wike is the immediate past Governor of Rivers State.