Presidential candidate of the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, and his team have perfected plans to break the ranks of Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State.
Also, strong indications emerged that Governor Wike and those sympathetic to his cause may be settling for former Ondo State governor, Dr Olusegun Mimiko, as a replacement for the PDP National Chairman, Senator Iyorchia Ayu, if their plans scale through.
Atiku and Wike have been engaged in a feud over the removal of Senator Ayu.
Recall that the Rivers State governor has vowed not to quit the PDP over his feud with the former Vice President and Ayu, insisting that he would remain in the party and fight for relevance.
Similarly, some of Wike’s allies including Governors Samuel Ortom (Benue), Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi (Enugu), Okezie Ikpeazu (Abia) and Seyi Makinde (Oyo), had announced their withdrawal from the PDP Presidential Campaign Council pending the replacement of Ayu as chairman.
Other members of the group are former PDP deputy national chairman, Olabode George, Donald Duke, Ayo Fayose, Ibrahim Dakwanmbo, Segun Mimiko, Jonah Jang, and former governors of Cross River, Ekiti, Gombe, Ondo and Plateau state, respectively, amongst others.
Atiku moves to break Wike’s ranks
The Nigeria Standard was reliably informed by multiple sources that the PDP presidential candidate and leaders of the party are already reaching out to Wike’s allies with a view to prevailing on them to sheathe their swords and work for the success of the PDP in 2023.
A source, who spoke to The Nigeria Standard on condition of anonymity, said: “There is general thinking in the party that Wike has nothing to lose and his so-called allies have something to lose, while some of them have nothing at stake.
“There is a thinking in the party that those who have something at stake can be cultivated.
“And you know, this is a delicate thing, delicate in the sense that those individuals do not want to turn against Wike in a dramatic way. They know he can say things about them.”
Another source told The Nigeria Standard that the former Vice President has activated a process to reach out to aggrieved leaders of the party.
The source said: “There are some internal processes that have been activated to ensure that those people (Wike’s allies) are properly aligned with the dictates of the party which is to ensure that the party wins in 2023, which in fairness to those people, they are not averse to except for Wike. We don’t even know what he’s up to and those who say they are with him (Wike) don’t know what he is up to.”
Wike’s camp push Mimiko to replace Ayu
Following the unresolved crisis rocking the party, The Nigeria Standard was reliably informed that Governor Wike and some of his allies are pushing for former Ondo governor, Dr Mimikop, as Ayu’s replacement.
The Nigeria Standard, however, gathered that some PDP governors and leaders, who are sympathetic to Wike’s cause may not be aware of the latter’s plan to push Mimiko forward as Ayu’s replacement.
A source, privy to the subtle move, told The Nigeria Standard that “Not all those sympathetic to Wike’s cause know what he has up his sleeves but because they have been with him, some of his people are finding it difficult to abandon him.
“Some of them are weighing the possible consequence, part of which is Wike’s perchance for revealing it all and causing maximum damage, some of them are in a quandary.”
Meanwhile, An ally of Atiku faulted Wike’s push for Ayu’s removal, insisting that the candidate and other PDP leaders would not do anything that is unconstitutional.
He said: “Atiku and leaders of the PDP will never do anything unconstitutional because of Wike because Nigerians are watching. He will keep pushing and even after getting what he wants, he will ask for something else. We know his game.
“There must be a stop to this and that is why we want to move on with his people.
“Those insisting that Ayu must resign are overlooking the constitution which states that his replacement must come from the North. They say it doesn’t matter. But the ripple effect would be too damning because you cannot then insist that the replacement from the North should resign, and then it will affect the national secretary, and down the line.”
Another source said that some of those with Wike was already looking at how they can avoid “becoming collateral victims of somebody else’s war.”
The source noted that some PDP governors sympathetic to Wike’s cause “are already piping down and are willing to work to Atiku and the party.”
