2023: Wike denies traveling to Europe with other PDP govs to pick party’s presidential candidate
Rivers Governor Nyesom Wike has dismissed insinuations that he and other Governors elected on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) travelled to Europe to choose the party’s presidential and vice-presidential candidates for the 2023 election.
The Governor said persons behind the insinuation were deliberating sowing the seeds of discord to ruin the chances of the PDP in the 2023 general elections.
Wike, in a statement on Thursday by his Special Assistant, Media, Kelvin Ebiri, said PDP Governors had been inundated with calls to confirm a text message circulated by a chieftain of the party, Chief Raymond Dokpesi that some Governors embarked on a weeklong trip to Europe to determine the party’s candidates.
Wike said: “I have always said to people in PDP, nobody should cause a division among the governors. We are trying as much as we can to build the party back and see that in 2023 PDP takes over governance.
“But I have some suspicion that people like Raymond Dokpesi are not really sincere to the Peoples Democratic Party and I think I’m convinced that Raymond Dokpesi appears to be working for APC.
“I don’t understand where Raymond Dokpesi gets this information, this rumour that governors travelled to Europe to decide who will be the presidential candidate and vice- presidential candidate of PDP. I wonder why governors will travel to Europe to take such a decision.”
Wike said though the Governors had nothing against Dokpesi campaigning for the 2019 PDP presidential candidate and former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, he should be circumspect and desist from causing crisis in the party.
The Governor implored Atiku, whom he described as a well-known political strategist, to stop Dokpesi from spreading dangerous rumour capable of polarising stakeholders in the party.
