Days after dumping the PDP presidential campaign and accusing its chairman of a 1BN bribery fraud, Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State has again met with the presidential candidate of the APC, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, in London, UK.
The meeting followed Wike’s high-stake interview in which he affirmed his dissociation with the presidential bid of PDP’s Atiku Abubakar over the candidate’s refusal to back an inclusive reorganization of the party’s hierarchy, including through the removal of its chairman Sen. Iyorchia Ayu who, similar to Atiku, is from the northern region of the country.
Wike’s rejection of the PDP is shared by other Governors such as Engr. Seyi Makinde of Oyo State and Samuel Ortom of Benue State, alongside other ranking members of the party such as former Governors Olusegun Mimiko of Ondo, Ayo Fayose of Ekiti, Donald Duke of Cross River, Ibrahim Dakwambo of Gombe, and Jonah Jang of Plateau, and a former Attorney General of the Federation, Mohammed Adoke.
By continuing talks with Tinubu of the APC, Wike is indicating clearly his readiness to jump ship and aid the emergence of the former Lagos Governor, analysts have said. Sources confirm that the meeting was focused on an alliance between the two political juggernauts which would see Tinubu improve his projected vote numbers in the South-South region of the country where Wike holds sway.
Beyond that, Wike’s extensive political network across the country which would now be used in the promotion of Tinubu and for his victory at the polls will cause a notable shift in the election dynamics and could augur a landslide in favor of the APC candidate.
Wike’s rejection of Atiku Abubakar has drained the PDP campaign of energy and enthusiasm, leaving it with no momentum despite the election being months away. A visibly fatigued Atiku whose sudden Europe trip raised eyebrows over his physical fitness has lurched from crisis to crisis since the controversial primary that produced him as the party’s candidate, unable to quell the raging fire threatening to condemn him to another defeat.