Plan by the immediate past governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Wike, to dump the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, for the All Progressives Congress, APC, has divided opinion in the state.
Those opposed to him have continued to talk tough explaining why he’s unfit to join let alone lead the APC in Rivers State.
While close associates who served in Wike’s administration have called for his defection to the APC, traditional members of the party are up against it.
Since the emergence of Bola Tinubu as president, Wike has been busy, and has met Tinubu four times already.
He has been rumoured as one of those to be chosen as a minister in the new government.
Tinubu was inaugurated on May 29. Before he was inaugurated, Wike hosted him when he was president-elect before visiting him on three different occasions.
He has also held several media parleys where he said he would be ready to join the Tinubu administration and pick up any appointment the president may offer him, noting “I’m not too big to serve my country.”
While APC members including those at the national level have said that’s a smart way to announce his readiness to join the APC and have voiced their opposition to it, Wike’s associates would have none of that.
Leading the call for Wike to dump the PDP is a chieftain of the APC and former Chief of Staff, Rivers State Government House, Tony Okocha who said Rivers APC was ready to receive Wike if he considers dumping the PDP.
Okocha was the Coordinator of the BAT-Vanguard, the disbanded Bola Ahmed Tinubu Vanguard in the South-South.
Okocha had said on Thursday that, “In the leadership of the Tinubu family in Rivers State, we are at peace 100 per cent with His Excellency, Barr Nyesom Wike, the immediate past Governor of Rivers State as our leader.
“He who pays the Piper dictates the tune. When it was difficult, even when the national body could not oblige us with funds for the national rally here, the magic was done by somebody.”
He demanded that, “Our demand is that nobody should rob Peter to pay Paul. Our own share of the booty given to us should be handed over to His Excellency Nyesom Wike.
“We are confident that as soon as it gets to him, he knows those who worked for Tinubu, and it will get to us.
“It is only natural, that is how it should go, ” he added.
Carpeting the PDP, Wike’s party, he argued that, “It does appear to us that the PDP does not know what they have in Wike. So we are asking and calling on Wike to come over to Macedonia and lead us.”
But another chieftain of the APC, Augustine Wokocha, on Friday faulted calls for Wike to take a prime position in Rivers APC.
Wokocha, who was a Commissioner for Power and served as the Coordinator of the disbanded Tinubu/Shettima Grassroot Independent Campaign Council in Rivers State rejected the call saying, “The victory of Bola Tinubu in the last election in Rivers State cannot be given to one individual.
“It is a combination of the over 200, 000 votes from Rivers who pended their thumb for the man who is our President today.
“I ran the campaign for the Tinubu election. I can’t remember anywhere, anytime when the immediate past governor of Rivers State canvass any support for the President
“I can’t remember any forum when he referred to the candidate of our party. He did not direct his people to vote for him, to my knowledge. So I don’t know what Okocha means by Wike immensely contributing to Tinubu’s Victory.
“So it is important we continue to appreciate Rivers people. And of course, people worked, those who did the canvassing to convince people that Tinubu was a better candidate also deserve our appreciation and gratitude.”
While stressing that Wike can join the APC if he wants as he’s not opposed to his defection, he added that, “Candidly speaking politics is the more the merrier. So Wike coming to the APC is a welcome development.
“What is an aberration is to say Wike should come and take over the party. This is the same party that its members were hounded like grass cutters by those supporting the man who is being invited to join the party today.
“It was the same Wike who said APC is cancer stage four and the PDP is malaria. But he is welcome if he has suddenly realised that our cancer is better than malaria he is suffering from.
”But it will be a major disservice to the people of Rivers State to say Wike should come and lead the APC in Rivers State. APC is not lacking leadership.
He pointed out that the Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi and him remain the leader of the party, he added that, “Nobody should take credit that is not his own and take claims that are not theirs. We won’t allow such misleading not our people,” Wokocha stated.