Rivers State governor, Nyesom Wike, has denied claims that he worked against Labour Party’s presidential candidate Peter Obi in the February 25th presidential election.
Wike said that there was never a time the G-5 governors endorsed Obi or another candidate as their preferred candidate for the presidential position.
During a media chat on Wednesday in Port Harcourt, the governor said he had told Rivers people, to vote for the unity of Nigeria.
“I don’t work for INEC; I don’t have INEC documents with me. I am not an ad hoc staff of INEC, and so I am not in a place to rig elections for anybody. When you have the materials of INEC, you talk about rigging. But I take exception to Peter Obi’s comments that I came out against him. People are not being sincere; people are not appreciative.”
The Rivers State governor maintained that his primary preoccupation as far as the 2023 presidential election was concerned was for a southern Nigerian to succeed President Muhammadu Buhari, whose tenure ends on May 29th, 2023.
“I never told Rivers people to vote for the candidate (of the APC). I told Rivers people (to vote) for the unity of Nigeria. As far as Rivers State is concerned, their position is that ‘look, we want a power shift.’ And there are two candidates from the South – Asiwaju Bola Tinubu and Peter Obi.
“If Rivers people have chosen to vote for Asiwaju, and the same Rivers people also voted for Peter Obi, that tells you that they decided to vote for a Southern President. So, amongst them, one must always get the highest vote. If you look at the votes, APC won, followed by the Labour Party. So that tells you what the decision they took. That is the decision of Rivers people.”
Governor Wike said he was among those who recommended Obi to be Peoples Democratic Party presidential candidate Alhaji Atiku Abubakar’s running mate in 2019.
“In 2019, ask Peter Obi; I was one of the teams that chose Obi to be the Vice Presidential candidate of Alhaji Atiku Abubakar. When we met at Abubakar’s house, he said these are the names; I will choose Obi. Obi was invited while we were at Saraki’s house at night.
“People fought me like (senator Ike) Ekweremadu, my own friend, the governor of Ebonyi State, (David) Umahi, and Pius Anyim. Every blame was on me; why would I be the one that would say, Peter Obi? Why should I choose the South East? Did he come out to say governor Wike was the one who supported me to be the vice presidential candidate? He didn’t say so.”
He declared that the G-5 governors and the Integrity Group never unanimously endorsed Obi or any presidential candidate of southern Nigeria extraction during any of their meetings.
“There was never a time the integrity Group met and said it must be this person. We only agreed on the southern President. We formulated strategies, and the southern President emerged. Our interest is that a southern President should emerge.
“When we met, we decided on the southern President. We didn’t say it must be this; we said whatever you are doing, it must be the southern President. The aim of G5 was equity, fairness, and justice”.
The governor said the G-5 governor and members of the Integrity Group could not be accused of betraying the PDP. He stressed that those who blatantly refused to implement the provisions of the party’s constitution on the rotation of elective and appointive offices are to blame for the party’s electoral misfortune.
He said all the G-5 governors consisting of Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi of Enugu State, Samuel Ortom of Benue and Victor Ikpeazu of Abia, made a tremendous sacrifice to ensure the emergence of a southern president.
The governor, particularly, expressed delight that the governor of Oyo State, Seyi Makinde, who had earlier said he would not mind sacrificing his second term on the altar of equity, justice, and fairness, was re-elected.
“Ortom said even if he loses his senatorial election, let equity, justice, and fairness prevail. He may not gain it now. But history will be kind to him. The same applies to Ugwuanyi and Ikpeazu. Even Makinde said even if he lost his governorship ambition, he was interested in the unity of Nigeria”.
Wike boasted that in Rivers State, PDP won the governorship, three senatorial seats, and 31 federal and State constituencies in the general elections.
Ironically, he said the PDP national chairman, Dr Iyorchia Ayu, who once derided the G-5 governors as small boys, failed to win his ward, local government, and State for the presidential candidate in the February 25th election. He said PDP also lost woefully in Niger, Jigawa, Imo, Sokoto, Yobe, and other states.
“Ayu lost his polling unit. I won three senatorial and 31 House of Assembly seats, and he got nothing. Lamido did not win the presidential election in Jigawa. Babangida Aliyu did not win. So, who is the betrayer? We won to make sure PDP exists. Of what relevance is he as national chairman? He couldn’t deliver his polling unit.”
Wike dismissed insinuations that he will try to manipulate the Rivers State governor-elect, Siminailayi Fubara when he leaves office.
He also clarified that Fubara, who resigned as Accountant General of the State to contest the 2023 governorship election, is not wanted by the EFCC. According to him, some disgruntled politicians in the State were behind the rumour.
The governor stated that Fubara, on the assumption of office, will continue from where his administration stopped and will consolidate on the new Rivers Vision.
