He is the beautiful bride; the much sought after one that would-be grooms are craving for. That is Nyesom Wike, the truculent governor of Rivers State. As governor, nothing passes Wike by. He is that governor that does not shy away from a fight. And so when he lost the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential ticket, he ensured that the matter did not end there. He must remain relevant in some other ways. That is what has put the PDP on edge. Wike is an issue that must be dealt with. So far, the PDP has not been able to pigeonhole the governor. As a matter of fact, he has broken loose completely. How to cage him is the greatest headache afflicting the PDP at moment.
As things stand today, Wike has become the single most important politician in the land. The major political parties who are in the race with the PDP are cashing in on the battle within the main opposition party. They are reaching out to Wike. He has become the indispensable one, the man who must be consulted or associated with in order to win the 2023 presidential election.
That is why politicians have been going on pilgrimage to Port Harcourt. Wike is the political Baal that must be worshipped. No one wants to be left out in the rat race. The belief out there is that an association with Wike could open doors. It could bring about a breakthrough in the 2023 polls.
As the horse-trading goes on, the PDP, Wike’s political constituency, is squirming with discomfort. It is aware that Wike is working hard to undermine the political family. Regardless of that, the leadership of the party is being as tactful as it can be. It does not want to rock the boat by going for broke with Wike. That is why it has chosen to play down the governor’s anti-party disposition. It does not want to make any issue out of that. Doing so at this time could make Wike a complete bull in a china shop.
The PDP, from all indications, wants Wike on board. But that is not working. Even though the party may be working hard to stop the dance of staccato going on within its fold, it is believed that it is not very keen on Wike. The party is only trying to manage him so as not to make him a tool in the hands of other major contenders for the 2023 presidential race. Ironically, it is this genteel disposition of the PDP that is firing Wike up. The man has come to see himself as the political dynamo of our time. He believes that he possess the Midas touch, the spark that will ignite victory for any party he pitches his tent with.
As I already hinted, the PDP is not really keen on Wike. That explains all the foot-dragging and standoffishness that attended the so-called reconciliation efforts of the party with the governor. On the contrary, the All Progressives Congress (APC) is seeing Wike as a trophy it must run away with. The party wants to grab the governor in order to undermine and, possibly, weaken PDP’s quest for the presidency. In fact, APC ‘s interest in Wike is borne out of mischief rather than anything else. That was why Governor Aminu Masari of Katsina State declared very petulantly the other day that Wike will work for APC in the 2023 elections. Wike has not refuted this claim even though there may be no substance to it. For Wike, such silence is a strategy. It is a way of putting PDP on edge the more and by so doing force it to realize that the governor is important after all.
But what is really driving the mad scramble for Wike? Is it his electoral value or the money he will bring to the table? We need to put this in a straitjacket in order to better understand and appreciate why the polity has literally caught fire on account of one man. I submit that Wike is overrated. The presidential candidates are falling over themselves to get his attention, thereby giving the impression that he holds the aces. But does he? I do not think so.
It is important to note that we are going in for a general election, not delegates election. Whereas one man can control an overwhelming majority of delegates to vote in a prescribed direction, you cannot say the same thing of a general election. In fact, general elections are so fluid that they hardly admit of the dictations, fancies and fantasies of any one individual. Wike is, therefore, not in a position to dictate to the millions of registered voters in Rivers State the way to vote. Besides, Wike is not a political party. He is only a governor. I have never seen anywhere in Nigeria where only the governor determines and influences the actions of all voters in a state. If governors were that indispensable and all-powerful at general elections, why do some of them lose their own re-election bids? Even Wike, the man at the centre of the storm, had a hell of a time during his second term election. He was not sure of victory because of the mountainous opposition that was stacked up against him. When he eventually won, he broke down in tears. It was tears of joy. He did not know he would triumph. So, it was not a smooth ride for him then. Why then does anyone feel that Rivers State is simply under the kitty of the governor? Where do we place other influential politicians in the state? Are they mere onlookers? I do not think so.
Perhaps, what is driving the Wike-mongers may be the wads of cash at his disposal. The governor has so much state fund to throw around to the extent that some of his fellow governors have become slaves to his financial influence. In Benue, Oyo and Abia states, for instance, it is more important to prance around Wike than to face the challenging issues of governance bedeviling the states. Their governors have become so Wike-drunk that whatever he says has become an article of faith. It is all about cash. Those scrambling for Wike simply need his cash for the elections and nothing more.
However, as Wike works hard to undermine the PDP, he should not be carried away by the overtures of the APC. The governor must be wise enough to understand that he has no place in the ranks of the ruling party. He cannot fit into the APC fold. He can only be used and disgraced out much later. By which time, Wike would have left office as governor. By that time, too, he would have lost all the influence he wields at moment. The governor, therefore, needs to slow down in his romance with the APC. Rather, he should think of a platform that will work, if he cannot make up with his party. There is still politics to play after his governorship. He should not fritter away all his goodwill to the extent of becoming a political leper after office.