Nyesom Wike, the governor of Rivers State, has alleged that governors of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, met and plotted to stop the emergence of Ahmad Lawan and Femi Gbajabiamila as Senate President and Speaker of the House of Representatives in 2019 but that the plot was aborted by some of the governors.
He said he agreed to the plot at the time because it was not his duty to help the ruling APC to which Messrs Lawan and Gbajabiamila belong, but that he has no reason to start now.
Mr Wike made the revelation on Friday, August 12, 2022, during the commissioning of the Rivers State Legislative Quarters in Port Harcourt by Mr Gbajabiamila.
He said the same governors again betrayed him during the tussle for the position of minority leader of the House.
PDP had nominated Kingsley Chinda (PDP, Rivers), an ally of Mr Wike, as minority leader, but Mr Gbajabiamila announced Ndudi Elumelu (PDP, Delta) for the position.
“I have no regret not helping your party that time, even now. My business is to make your party uncomfortable. So I was supporting— it was Rivers State lodge in Abuja, where we plotted ‘you should not go’. We plotted but PDP governors sold me out. They supported you, even when we agreed that ‘Femi’ should not go, Lawan should not go.
“As a party, they went back and supported you. That is why you made Ndudi Elumelu the Minority Leader. We wrote you a letter that it was not what we wanted,” he said.
Mr Wike also mocked the PDP for threatening to impeach President Muhammadu Buhari over insecurity.
He stated that the lawmakers have no balls to proceed with the impeachment threat.
The lawmakers of the main opposition party had before embarking on holiday recently gave Mr Buhari six weeks to fix the general insecurity in the country or risk impeachment.
“People don’t like the truth, but the truth must be told at all times. They are saying they will impeach Buhari. They don’t have the balls. They don’t have it. Ordinary to override…….let us see who will stand up and say, Mr Speaker. They think they can use Nigeria, Wayo. Things you know you cannot do, why are you saying it out,” Mr Wike said.
Responding before commissioning the Legislative Quarters, Mr Gbajabiamila said the experience of Mr Wike affirmed the saying that “in politics, there is no permanent friend or enemy, only that permanent interest.”
“And by God’s grace, this journey you have started, which you and I know shall get to the permanent site,” the Speaker added.
Wike’s romance with APC
The timing of Mr Wike’s overture to Mr Gbajabiamila and other members of the ruling party has continued to generate concerns because of the crisis in the PDP.
Before now, the governor was inviting senior members of his party, PDP, and other senior citizens to commission projects in the state. At some point, he also invited a few APC members, including former Governor Rochas Okorocha of Imo State, to commission projects in Rivers State.
Mr Wike lost the PDP presidential ticket to former Vice President Atiku Abubakar in May. The Rivers governor and his supporters are believed to be aggrieved that he was not picked by Atiku as his running mate having emerged second in the presidential primary.
Atiku instead went for Governor Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta State.
There have been efforts to reconcile Messrs Atiku and Wike.
However, just as the efforts are being made, Mr Wike recently began to invite members of the APC again to commission projects constructed by his administration.
Only last Monday, Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, an APC member, was in Rivers State to commission Orochiri-Worukwo (Waterlines) Flyover built by the Wike administration.
Both Messrs Sanwo-Olu and Gbajabiamila are close political associates of the presidential candidate of the APC, Bola Tinubu.
A couple of weeks earlier, Mr Wike hosted two APC governors, Kayode Fayemi of Ekiti State and Rotimi Akeredolu of Ondo State.
Former Governors Abdulaziz Yari and Aliyu Wamamako of Zamfara and Sokoto States, both APC members, are some of the recent visitors to the Rivers State Government House.
