From Tony John, Port Harcourt
Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, has expressed mixed feelings over comments credited to the presidential candidate of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, that what the North needs is a northerner, not an Igbo or a Yoruba person as next president of Nigeria.
He said such statement, if true, was a threat to the unity of Nigeria at a time efforts should be concerted in giving every Nigerian a sense of belonging.
Wike spoke, yesterday, at the international wing of the Port Harcourt International Airport, Omagwa in Ikwerre Local Government Area, shortly on arrival from Spain.
Accompanied by governors, Seyi Makinde of Oyo State, Okezie Ikpeazu (Abia) and Samuel Ortom (Benue), he said: “I don’t believe my candidate for PDP could make such statement. But, assuming he did make that statement, and this is one of the things we have been saying, this country needs to be united and part of the way you unite it is to include everybody.”
Wike expressed his stance against anything that relegates any section of Nigeria and treat them as second fiddles.
He said Atiku’s handlers should also share in the blame for allowing their principal to make such comment in public, which is capable of heightening tension and deepening the feeling of alienation among Nigerians.
“That has now confirmed to me one of the reasons those of them in their camp, do not want the National Chairman, Iyorciha Ayu, to resign because they do not want inclusivity. I don’t know how those who are packaging the presidential candidate will allow him to make such statement. I was reading where somebody was saying it was a direct response to a question he was asked.”
Given that the statement is now in the public domain, Governor Wike advised the leadership of PDP to tender apology to Nigerians while explaining the circumstances in which the statement was made.
“Be that as it may, I don’t think it was necessary at this time, as people who are going in for election, as people who want Nigerians to trust them to have allowed such a statement to be made.
“If it (statement) was made, as they said, I think, as a party, we need to apologise to Nigerians, assuming the (statement) was made.
“People are denying it was made, but if you watch the video, it appears true but people are saying with recent technology, anything can be done.
“This requires further explanation by our party, because Nigerians, as it is today, we can’t go this way if we want this country to remain as the way our founding fathers struggled, laboured, and toiled all the night to see there is a country, called Nigeria.”
Wike took a swipe at Ayu, saying going by his responses to the allegations levelled against him, he stands indicted except proven otherwise.
“Luckily for me, he (Ayu) has now mentioned that he went to the presidential candidate, Atiku, where they discussed on the issues of borrowing. Now, the question is, when you talk about borrowing, who approves borrowing? You must go to the National Working Committee (NWC) to say you want to borrow money. I challenge him to bring the records where NWC approved that the party should go and borrow N1 billion. What is the collateral?”
Governor Wike explained that in matters of funding the party, the governors had been up to that responsibility dutifully.
According to him, it was, therefore, unthinkable that the national chairman would, in the guise of seeking funding for the party, opted to collect loan on behalf of the party without notifying the NWC and governors.
“Be sincere, how can you talk of N1 billion loan without the NWC mooting the idea, without the governors knowing? Then, you talk about the N100 million he said he told the Board of Trustees (BoT).”