Wike: I Didn’t Work Against Obi’s Presidency

*Explains why LP presidential candidate left PDP 

*NYCN urges Rivers youths to vote for Fubara

Blessing Ibunge in Port Harcourt

Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, has denied accusations that he worked against the presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Peter Obi, in the recent presidential election on February 25, 2023.

The Rivers governor, who spoke yesterday, when he hosted the National Executive Committee of ‘Ohanaeze Ndi Igbo’ Worldwide, at Government House, Port Harcourt, however, said the reason Obi left PDP was because former Jigawa State governor, Sule Lamido told him pointedly the north would produce the next president.

This is as the National Youth Council Of Nigeria (NYCN) in Rivers State, has urged the youths not to vote for greedy politicians in the pending governorship and state assembly elections, but someone from the new generation, citing the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state, Mr. Siminialaye Fubara, as a good example.
However, Wike said he could not have worked against Peter Obi when he supported him during his presidential campaign in the state, not minding that he was not his party member.

“I supported that power must come to the south. When Obi came here, I gave him all the logistics: vehicles, other supports and paid for the stadium, but some other persons applied and I refused. You should know me too well by now,” he said.
Explaining how Obi left the PDP for the Labour Party, he said, “Obi was running with us. I knew when Obi left. He was principled and he said he can’t stand it, people should say the truth. He went to see Sule Lamido in Jigawa, not in Dutse, but in a village that will take you more than four or five hours drive from Dutse the capital.

“You know what he told Obi? He didn’t tell him that look, you came late and I have chosen somebody. He said it is the north that will produce the next president. That was how Obi left,  saying why is he wasting time. Ask him, that’s how he left PDP.
“And that was what I saw at the convention ground. Within minutes, knowing that I was going to win, your sons were all the ones who did everything, sabotaged me. I said ok, no problem.

“But I still maintained that look, if you have taken the presidential candidate you can’t take chairmanship again, give us back the chairman and I still stand by that and if you don’t do that whatever you see you take.”
He, however, said he felt satisfied that southern Nigeria has produced the next president of the country resulting from the 2023 presidential election, noting that, the electoral outcome was an undeniable justification of the undeterred advocacy embarked upon by the G-5 governors of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who worked so hard, contributing their quota to realise that feat.

On his part, Chairman of NYCN, Chijioke Ihunwo,  speaking at a one-day youth summit organised in partnership with Rivers Network, urged the youths to support someone from the new generation of leaders for the state.
“We must not give the state to miscreants. We must not give the state to greedy people. We are going to vote the people, who have the mind to support the youths.

“The same set of politicians have been in charge of the state since 1999, beginning from Odili, through Amaechi, including Magnus Abe and even our current governor Nyesom Wike and that is why we need younger person. We must support Mr. Siminialaye Fubara as governor of Rivers State.
“We need younger people and if Sim becomes governor we will begin to have youths as commissioners not old men. So, don’t be deceived by faceless politicians. This is the time for the youths to rule Rivers State,” he charged.