By Dapo Falade
The chances of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) winning the September governorship election in Edo State appears dimmer as its leaders are divided over reconciliation efforts of the state chapter of the party.
Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State, on Tuesday, pulled out of the reconciliation efforts, describing some members of the PDP National Working Committee (NWC) as sycophants and tax collectors who will never tell the truth.
Wike, in a statement by the state Commissioner for Information and Communications, Paulinus Nsirim, also alleged that the NWC, rather than carrying everybody along, resorted to using the media to blackmail him.
“I told them that in Edo State, we must handle the issue carefully and carry everybody along. They must respect human beings and not behave like tax collectors.
“They said because an order was obtained from a Federal High Court in Port Harcourt, then I am responsible. I have had sleepless nights to resolve the issue in Edo State. The governors of Edo, Adamawa and Delta states know what I have done to resolve the issues in Edo State,” he said.
The governor said he had pulled out of the reconciliatory moves in Edo PDP because of what he described as a senseless accusation, adding that he had directed his lawyer to write a national newspaper on the publication made against him on Tuesday.
“I know the members of the NWC of the PDP who connived with the newspaper. They are tax collectors. Let them challenge me and I will come out with more facts. Nobody will rubbish me by raising false accusations against me. I will fight back,” he stated.
Wike questioned why the PDP NWC now wanted to consult the governors of the party, saying such a consultation did not happen in the case of Bayelsa State and warned that if the PDP was not careful, the crisis in the All Progressive Congress (APC) would be a child’s play.
“I am brought up not to accept injustice, and that is why I keep speaking out on national issues. Nobody in the PDP can intimidate Rivers State.
“Nobody can threaten me because I said things must be done constitutionally. I will always continue to satisfy my conscience. From now on, I want to concentrate on the development of Rivers State,” he added.
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