PDP begs Wike as gov alleges betrayal, N1bn bribe

The crisis rocking the Peoples Democratic Party took a new dimension on Friday with the Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, making a series of allegations against the Chairman, Iyorchia Ayu, and the party’s presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, among others.

While the PDP is waiving the olive branch in the direction of the governor, Ayu and Atiku refused to react to his outburst.

At the PDP convention in May, Wike had polled 237 votes to finish second behind Atiku, a former Vice-President, whose 371 votes gave him the privilege of flying the party’s flag in the 2023 presidential election.

Although Wike has continued to pledge his loyalty to the PDP, he is insistent that following the emergence of Atiku, the national chairman of the party, Ayu, cannot continue to preside over the affairs of the PDP given that he is from the North like the presidential candidate.

With Ayu and Atiku both unwilling to grant his request, Wike has wasted no time in forming a formidable movement whose members include governors Seyi Makinde, Okezie Ikpeazu and Samuel Ortom of Oyo, Abia and Benue states respectively, to force the chairman out of office.