Governor of River State, Nyesom Wike has said he will not support former President Goodluck Jonathan if he defects to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) to contest in the 2023 presidential election.
The governor said this during an interview with British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) Pidgin on Thursday over rumoured reports that the ex-president may soon defect to the APC.
Reacting on BBC hours after a former aviation minister and chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Femi Fani-Kayode defected to the APC, Wike stated that he will only support Goodluck Jonathan if he contests as a member of the PDP.
He explained that supporting him was not about ethnicity as they both hail from the same South-South region of the country, but about the party he contests under.
“When you said pick ticket, from which party? Is it APC or PDP?
“To pick ticket means you’re representing the interest of a party. I’m in PDP and I will not be involved in anti-party activities. If he is APC, I won’t support him because I’m not into that kind of politics.
“It is not about ethnicity for me, but about the party. If he joins APC I can’t support him,” Wike added.
There have been reports that ex-President Goodluck Jonathan may soon defect to the APC.
Recall that the National Secretary, APC Caretaker, and Extra-ordinary Convention Planning Committee, John Akpanudoedehe, had stated that ex-President Jonathan would be given a founding member status if he joins the ruling party.
Akpanudoedehe, who was a guest in an interview with Channels Television on Wednesday, said the former President would be allowed to contest in 2023 on a fairground.
Meanwhile, His former aide, Pastor Reno Omokri, on Friday faulted claims that his former boss will soon dump PDP to APC.
