Nyesom Wike, the governor of Rivers state, has announced that he will begin campaigning for his preferred presidential candidate in January 2023.
Wike, a PDP member, has publicly said that he does not support Atiku Abubakar as the party’s candidate for president. He is adamant that President Muhammadu Buhari, a Northerner, cannot be replaced as leader in 2023 by another Northerner.
Wike has also stated that for him to support Atiku, Ayu Iyorchia, the PDP’s national chairman must step down.
Governor Wike said at the opening of a flyover in Obi-Akpor LGA on Thursday, that he would start organizing people “from state to state” in support of his chosen candidate in January.
He said, “From January next year, I will campaign to my people who they will vote for. So, all of you who have been in suspense and have been saying all kinds of things and abusing me, wait. January has come.
“Not only will I tell them where they will vote, but I will also move from state to state and tell them why they should vote for people I think they should vote for.
“Nothing will happen. So, all of you appearing on television to abuse me, don’t waste your saliva again. January will come. All those of you that tell people you have 40 shoes and 50 wristwatches, the time has come to convert those watches to votes.
“Those of you who haven’t been stable, moving from one political party to another — you move from PDP to here, you move from here back to PDP; those of you, who is 2015, you said if they vote for PDP, they are voting for insurgency, corruption — wait.
“All of us will reply to tell Nigeria the things you said, how far are they now? Is it the same PDP or a new PDP?”
