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Blessing Ibunge in Port Harcourt
Rivers Governor Nyesom Wike has boasted nobody can suspend him from membership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), adding he will continue to reveal the injustice meted out to some members of the party.
Governor Wike said even if there was such plan to suspend him, not those who ran away from the party in 2014.
Wike who spoke on Friday during a media parley in Government House, Port Harcourt, restated that he was still a member of PDP and will remain so until there was equal justice, equity and fairness for all party members.
He said: “I am still in PDP and have not said I am leaving the party. But those who ran away from the party cannot suspend me from the party.
“I beg them today to suspend me from the party, they know what I will do”, he said, threatening that if they pushed him farther he would reveal some secrets to Nigerians that will shake everybody.
“If Nigerians hear a lot of things going on now in the party that wants to take over from the present government, it will shake the country”.
Responding to questions from the media representative at the parley, Governor Wike alleged that the National Chairman of PDP, Dr. Iyorchia Ayu, manipulated the convention that produced the former Vice-President, Atiku Abubakar, as the presidential candidate of the party.
He said Ayu allegedly compromised the integrity of the convention, intimidated and influenced some aspirants to withdraw from the race for Atiku.
He said: “A whole chairman of a party, who is supposed to be the umpire, was threatening people to withdraw. He threatened that if Wike wins he would resign. He kept calling people that if they refused to withdraw that Wike was going to win.
“He was holding various meetings and mounting pressure on people to resign. He was supposed to be the umpire. We didn’t want the party to go to court and we kept telling him to do the right thing. He was working for a particular candidate. There was nothing Ayu didn’t do to ensure that Wike failed.
“I spoke last based on alphabetical order. When I came out to speak, there was danger. The applause was much. Everybody had spoken and we sat down to commence voting but a whole chairman of the planning committee announced that there was an announcement.
“He gave back the microphone to Tambuwal. He said he wanted to withdraw but he went ahead to say people should vote for Atiku. If not for the love of the party, that convention would have ended up in crisis.
“I would have said, that this convention will not take place. Ayu described Tambuwal, a national chairman as the hero of the convention. I never ran presidential election to want to be the vice-president”.
The Rivers state governor also accused Ayu of corrupt practices in the service to the party.
Again, responding to more questions, the Rivers Governor said Governor Tanbuwal was among those, who humiliated Jonathan after the 2014 convention as they insisted that it was the turn of the north.
Wike said Atiku and a former Senate President, Saraki rejected former President Goodluck Jonathan’s pleas to rescind their decision of leaving the party in 2014.
Wike explained that the party’s constitution contained provisions for zoning of elective and party positions but lamented that some people were doing everything within their powers to manipulate the system.
“There shall be zoning of party and elective offices. It is clear. Not ambiguous. But people will always try to manipulate the system to suit them.
“They slant stories in such a way as to deceive the public. The founding fathers know the complexity of this country. They did it in a such a way as not to have problems.
“People should not forget history. In 2013 and 2014, there was an issue of the presidential candidate Jonathan emerged. Atiku and others walked out of the convention. Tambuwal and former Senate President all walked out
“Jonathan did everything to talk to them. But they rebuffed him as a sitting President. President travelled to London to see Atiku, but he rebuffed him”.
