As the Peoples Democratic Party crisis keeps spiraling, Rivers Governor Nyesom Wike and some of his allies have returned to London to continue with horse-trading and political brinkmanship.
This is caused by the inability of Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, the PDP Presidential candidate, to quell the warring factions and plaster the seeming cracks in the party.
Atiku had met with Wike and some of his allies in London two weeks ago and reportedly appealed to the governors on the need for PDP to go united into next year’s election.
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Wike and his allies were also said to have met Peter Obi, the Labour Party Presidential Candidate in company of former Nigeria’s President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo in London.
However, after the meeting with Atiku, Wike and Senator Iyorchia Ayu, National Chairman of the party, set the mass media aflame with bickering last week.
After the heated exchange of words, Wike and his loyalists, including Benue State Governor Samuel Ortom, headed for London.
Straightnews gathered that the London meeting is meant for strategy ahead of the National Executive Committee (NEC) and the National Working Committee (NWC) meetings that will hold before the establishment of the PDP campaign council later in the week.
“The Wike Camp were hopeful that Atiku will prevail on the National Chairman Ayu to give up his position. But the event of the last few days might have changed the dynamics of the whole crisis. It is like both parties are not letting go. I believe they want to re-strategise and decide what their level of participation will be in the campaign council,” the source said.
Last week, Wike had promised that “something will soon happen” in the PDP, though he did not mention what exactly that is.
The Rivers governor had also said he would assist the National Chairman of the party to make the PDP lose the 2023 elections since according to him Ayu himself did not want the party to win.
This was after he accused the Chairman of the party of refusing to step down because of the N14 billion in the account of the party.
The main party organs are expected to meet this week to endorse the composition of the campaign council.
The organs will also look at the crisis in the party and see whether they can still salvage the situation.
Meanwhile, the Chief Press Secretary to the Benue State Governor, Nathaniel Ikyur, told Daily Trust that his principal has traveled out of the country, but on a two-week vacation.
He said :”Yes the Governor has traveled and he traveled with the Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike and he is expected back in the country on the 16th of this month.”
On whether he is not going to be back of the NEC meeting of the party slated for Thursday this week, Ikyur said, “No he is not going to be back before then, he is coming back on the 16th. The Governor is on a two weeks vacation, but may be his Deputy will represent him at the meeting.”
