Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, has called on former Vice President Atiku Abubakar to tell his chief campaigner for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential ticket in 2023, Chief Raymond Dokpesi, to stop the campaign of calumny against the governors.
Wike alleged that Dokpesi have been circulating a falsehood campaign that the PDP governors travelled to Europe to discuss who would be the presidential candidate and his running mate ahead of the 2023 general election.
The governor, who stressed that he has always warned the PDP members not to cause any division among the governors, said the main opposition party is ready to take over the reign of governance in 2023.
Wike made this known in a video shared on his Facebook page on Thursday.
The governor, while describing the allegation that the governors travelled to Europe to decide the flag bearer of the PDP in the 2023 presidential election as a “dangerous propaganda”, warned Dokpesi to stop the attempt of “bringing the governors down”.
He added that the campaign of falsehood against the PDP governors will not give an advantage to Atiku Abubakar, ahead of the next year election.
Wike said: “I have always said to people in PDP, nobody should cause a division among the governors. We are trying as much as we can to build the party back and see that in 2023, PDP takes over the reign of governance.
“But I have some suspicion that people like Raymond Dokpesi are not really sincere to the PDP. And I think and convinced that Dokpesi appears to be working for the APC.
“I don’t understand where Raymond Dokpesi get this information, this rumour that governors travelled to Europe to decide who would be the presidential candidate and vice presidential candidate comes from him.
“I wonder why governors will fly to Europe to take such decision whether such decision cannot be taken in Abuja, whether it cannot be taken in Yola, Benin, Port Harcourt, for him to carry such a very dangerous propaganda. I saw the texts he sent to people and which is very bad.”
He added: “As for me, I have told everybody who cares. If you love this party, you must be careful. What Raymond Dokpesi is doing because he is going too far because he thinks that by that kind of campaign he is carrying against the PDP governors will give an advantage to Atiku Abubakar, the Waziri of Adamawa. And as for me, the Waziri I know, no politician who has such a strategy will allow Dokpesi to carry such propaganda against the governors. It will be unfortunate because that is not the Waziri I know.
“Waziri is a known politician, he’s a strategist and people respect him. So if you have this kind of person that is projecting you to be president or presidential candidate of our party and who is trying by all means to bring down all the governors, I don’t think he is doing well for the Waziri of Adamawa.”
The governor warned that the propaganda against the PDP governors must stop.
Wike continued: “I will never accept any intimidation from anybody, it does not matter how highly place you are. It does not matter, I cannot be intimidated. The interest of Rivers State, the interest of Nigerians is paramount to whatever we are doing.
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“So I plead with High Chief Raymond Dokpesi, please enough is enough of this propaganda against governors. And this should be the last time Raymond Dokpesi should carry propaganda against the governors. I will not take it any longer. We respect him as an elder statesman, we respect him as somebody who means well for the meaningful society.
“The next step he takes, I’m going to react and I mean it, I’m going to talk to Nigerians because we know the governors have supported Dokpesi, not only Niger Delta governors, we have. So he should not bring down governors for the sake of whatever he wants.
“Respect is reciprocal, enough is enough. I will not take it, anybody can take it but I will not take it.
“How can you allege that governors travel to Europe at his age, 70 plus. Is that what you are going to see? Even if we’ve not been meeting before and the governors are meeting now, is it a crime?
“Why would you spread such a propaganda that even making it look like the ruling party is using you. You cannot bring us down, you cannot bring the governors down, you don’t have the tools. Yes, you are a media mogul as they say, you have the media house but we don’t have media but we have God.”
The governor, therefore, called on Atiku to caution Dokpesi against bringing confusion among the PDP governors.
Wide added: “So he should stop bringing the governors down. I want to advise my father, our political leader, AlhajI Atiku Abubakar, you cannot allow Raymod Dokpesi to be insulting the governors up and down, to be talking to us as if we don’t mean anything. To bring confusion, conspiracy, I don’t think it would mean well for him.
“We supported Atiku Abubakar, when he won and even if he wins now, the governors will rally round him. But when you destroy these governors and bring confusion, how will it work? So enough is enough.”
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