*Says Rivers governor’s grouse not about southern presidency
*Commends moves to secure US, UK visa ban against governor
Chuks Okocha and Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja
Presidential candidate of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, yesterday, said comments by Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike that he was sipping a 40-year-old whisky while watching him, and others protest on national television confirmed that Wike spoke under the influence of alcohol.
In a statement by his Special Assistant on Public Communication, Mr. Phrank Shaibu, Atiku, cautioned Wike to stay off alcohol, as it had not only affected his voice and demeanour but also his thinking faculty.
Atiku claimed the governor’s grouse with him had nothing to do with southern presidency but a manifestation of his bitter loss. He commended moves to secure visa ban against Wike in the United States and United Kingdom.
Wike had said, “As they were protesting, I just sat down and took a 40-year whisky. I called some of my friends and opened the 40-year-old whisky as they were protesting.”
But Atiku advised Wike to stop speaking while drunk.
He stated, “Governor Wike has confirmed what we all know. That he is a drunkard. The protest that was led by Waziri Atiku Abubakar on Monday, March 6, 2023, was against the stealing of the mandate of the Nigerian people, which in itself was a noble cause.
“For the sake of clarity, the protest occurred around 11.30 am. Wike says he was drinking whisky during the protest at 11.30am on a Monday. This reveals the sort of man he is.”
The former vice president stressed that Wike’s vituperations and wailings had nothing to do with ensuring that the south produced the next president.
He said Wike was just a sore loser, who had gone on to deceive other members of his G-5, who were now battling for political survival.
The statement said, “Wike’s grouse with Waziri Atiku Abubakar has nothing to do with zoning. He is only wailing because he lost the presidential ticket of the PDP in a fair contest. After losing, he deceived four other governors to join his futile campaign.
“Three governors of the G5 failed woefully at their senatorial elections, including Governor Okezie Ikpeazu, who, as a sitting governor, came a distant third in the Abia South senatorial election. For Governor Seyi Makinde, his ambition is hanging by a thread after his misadventure cost the PDP to lose all three senatorial elections.
“Wike has not held a single meeting with his G-5 members, having dumped them since their defeat. He has been rejoicing over the outcome of the polls even though his men have all lost. This is the sort of man he is, and yet, he claims not to be committing anti-party infractions.”
Atiku lambasted Wike for admitting on video to have “manipulated” the outcome of the polls in his state in the last election.
He commended the nearly 300,000 Nigerians, who have signed a petition on Change.Org to demand that the United States, the United Kingdom, and the European Union impose a visa ban on Wike.
Atiku alleged, “At this point, I would love to commend the nearly 300,000 Nigerians, who have signed the petition for Wike’s visa sanction. This is a step in the right direction. This is a man, who in every election he has ever been involved in has been characterised by rigging and violence so much so that under his watch, the media tagged his state, ‘Rivers of Blood’.
“This is a man, who talks down on traditional rulers in his state, arrests those he doesn’t agree with, seals off the buildings of his opponents, and even revokes Cs of O of those in his bad books.”
