As Peoples Democratic Party crisis is festering, Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike said he would help the Party’s National Chairman, Iyorchia Ayu not to win the 2023 general elections.
Reacting to calls for his resignation by some governors and other stakeholders, Ayu said that “children’ who didn’t know why the party was formed can’t be calling for my resignation.”
In an interview with BBC Hausa, he noted, “I have not violated any rules; in fact, I am working to bring reforms to the party. I am truly not bothered by the unnecessary controversy being generated.
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“When we started PDP, these children were not around. They are children who do not know why we formed the party. We will not allow any individual to destabilise our party,” he said.
But, Wike, while speaking commissioning of a road in Omerelu community in Ikwerre Local Government Area of Rivers on Thursday, September 1, described Ayu as a “greedy man who was only after his own selfish interests.”
The Governor added that when the party suffered defeat in 2015, Ayu was a “prodigal father who was nowhere to be found.”
“Ayu was resurrected from the gutters to become the PDP national chairman. He was a-nobody prior to attaining the position,” Wike said.
“I thought as a chairman of a party who wants to win election, your business is to bring peace to your party, your business is not to divide the party, your business is not to show arrogance to your party.
“Ayu said we are children. Yes, the children who brought you to be chairman of the party; the children who brought you from the gutters to make you chairman.
“Ayu, you were impeached as Senate President. Ayu, you were sacked two times by Obasanjo in his administration. Arrogance cannot take you to anywhere. Now we have seen that you do not want the party to win election, we will help you.
“These children you say we are, these boys we are, that brought you from nothing. Ayu, you said you founded this party. But you left the party in 2007. You founded a company, you left the company. People stood and brought out the company to what it is today. You have no moral right to still come and claim that you founded the company. You left with your shares, other shareholders have come in.
“(When you wanted to be chairman of the party), you were sleeping in your house, you were calling me every second, telling me “thank you my brother”, my brother, oh, oh, haba, haba.”
“You say I am a boy, (Governor) Seyi Makinde is a boy, (Governor) Ortom your brother who signed on your behalf is a boy, Abia (Governor) is a boy, Enugu (Governor) is a boy. Today all those who brought you as chairman are all boys. Nigerians have seen how ungrateful some of you can be. That is why Nigerians have to be careful. If you give this man power, if you give these people power, are you sure they will also be grateful to Nigerians? As you make your bed, so you lie on it.
“I have kept quiet thinking we will reconcile. Now that you have brought arrogance to say you were elected. Where did you campaign? Show me where your poster was anywhere in this state? Even when we gave you money to go and do poster, you put the money in your pocket. It is unfortunate.
“People like Ayu, small thing they ran away from the party and joined Action Congress where you have the presidential candidate under APC today. You are talking to people who salvaged the party as small children because there is N14 billion in PDP account. It will finish.
“A man who says he wants his party to win election, and instead of him to see how he can go down apologizing to people, I am sorry, I made a mistake, I am sorry it is not what I meant, I am sorry for the sake of the party, he is arrogantly telling us that we are children. A man who is inconsistent and ran away from the party, telling those of us who spent our time, sleepless nights to make sure this party does not go down now has the temerity, the audacity to tell us we are children. We will tell you that you are the prodigal father.
“A man that was impeached, a man that was sacked, a man that ran away from the party, is now coming to say ‘I was a founding member of the party,’ then you ran away. Those who struggled to save the party, the prodigal father now came and saw that the children have built the house, he now tells the children ‘you people should get away, I was the builder of this house.’
Bode George backs Wike
Also speaking at the commissioning, Bode George, a PDP chieftain, knocked Ayu over the comment, describing him as immature.
“How can you call grown-up men “children” for demanding your resignation as chairman? Are you saying they should not grow?” George asked.
The elder statesman also backed Wike’s call for Ayu’s resignation, saying his continued refusal was causing an imbalance for the party.
“I am calling for an immediate resignation of Ayu as PDP chairman. He should step down honourably because he had promised to do so if the party’s presidential candidate emerged from the North.
“His leadership is causing an imbalance within the party. How can both the chairman and presidential candidate be Northerners? He should do the honourable thing and resign immediately,” George said.
Other dignitaries present at the event were the deputy governor of Rivers State, Mrs Ipalibo Banigo, Senator Olaka Nwogu, Chief Dan Orbih, Mrs Roli Bode-George and Senator Mao Ohuabunwa.
