Atiku: Wike Deceived G-5 Govs into Committing Political Suicide

•Says Rivers governor a traitor, vile dictator

Chuks Okocha and Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja

Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, yesterday,maintained that the Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, ended up deceiving Governors Okezie Ikpeazu (Abia), Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi (Enugu) and Samuel Ortom (Benue) into committing political suicide.

In a statement by his Special Assistant on Public Communication, Mr. Phrank Shaibu, Atiku also said betrayal, hypocrisy and deception were part of Wike’s ‘DNA’, stressing that it was why he lost relevance outside Rivers State and became a ‘bull in a China shop.’

Atiku, reacting to a statement by the Rivers state government  warning him (Atiku) to “caution his attack dogs”, insisted Wike lacked the moral right to caution anyone about decorum.

“Wike was nominated as minister by Governor Rotimi Amaechi. He got there and betrayed Amaechi and continues to insult him on a daily basis. In 2017, he tried to take over the soul of PDP by insisting that Prince Uche Secondus should be national chairman but he soon fought with Secondus and orchestrated his removal because of his desperation to be president.

“As governor, he constantly undermined his colleagues notably Governors Ben Ayade (Cross River), Dave Umahi (Ebonyi) and Godwin Obaseki (Edo). Ayade and Umahi eventually left out of frustration. Even Peter Obi left due to the constant insults from Wike,who battled with him over the structure of the PDP in Anambra State,” Atiku stressed.

He added that in 2021, Wike wanted Senator Iyorchia Ayu to hand him the presidential ticket but when it didn’t work, he tried to remove Ayu as well, declaring that in Wike’s most recent act of desperation, he deceived four of his colleague governors to reject the PDP thereby pushing them into political suicide.

Berating Wike for saying he opposed Atiku’s candidacy for altruistic reasons and for the unity of Nigeria, claiming Wike never does anything for anyone but himself, Atiku said, “Wike’s claim that he opposed Atiku for the sake of fairness is like a prostitute claiming to be in business in order to feed the poor. No one believes his lies anymore including those he pays to attend his sponsored events, where he entertains them with horrible dance steps.

“Wike invited Peter Obi to Port Harcourt under the guise of commissioning projects only for him to work against the same Obi and then goes around to call Obi the hero of the election. This is obviously a shameless man, who takes Nigerians for fools.

“Wike is a snake and that is why even after helping Tinubu to a dubious victory in Rivers State, even Tinubu cannot invite him to the dinner table because a snake is not the kind of animal you can invite into your home. Such animals cannot be domesticated,” he argued.

Atiku, therefore, described Wike as a high-handed and brutal dictator who threw tantrums like a baby whenever he could not have his way, adding that, on Wike’s watch, anyone who disagreed with him in Rivers became a target for destruction.