Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike yesterday described All Progressives Congress (APC) governors as heroes of unity for supporting the North-South power shift.
He, however, said despite admiring the governors’ stance on zoning, he would not join the party.
He said he remained an unrepentant member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), but would vote for only the candidate that can guarantee unity and inclusion.
Wike slammed PDP presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, for hosting a Rivers town hall meeting in Abuja, saying he does not deserve votes from the state.
The governor spoke at two events: the 114th quarterly general meeting of the Rivers State Council of Traditional Rulers in Port Harcourt and the kick-off of the reconstruction of Emohua Road-Abalama-Tema Junction in Emohua Local Government Area.
He said: “I am not a member of APC and I will not be. But, they are the heroes of this country.
“The governors came out to say ‘Look, for the unity of this country, the presidency should go to the South’.
“The governors of APC said the way the county is, they want unity and therefore, the presidency should go to the South.
“They could have as well said ‘No, it doesn’t matter; as governors, we have the number. We can still say it should remain where it should remain’.
“But they didn’t do that. They said ‘the way we are seeing this country we want everybody to be together’.
“Let no one say because I have the population, therefore, you will continue to dominate. In dominating you need peace. Without peace, you cannot govern.”
The governor said Rivers helped to sustain PDP right from the era of former Governor Peter Odili down to his administration.
He insisted that it was wrong for a section of the country to deny other people the opportunity to participate in presiding over the affair of the nation.
Wike said: “We are all Nigerians and we want the unity of this country. We want Nigeria to move forward as a united country.
“Rivers State has always been in support of one Nigeria and we’ll continue to support one Nigeria.
“But in doing that, we believe in equity, we believe in justice, we believe in fairness.
“As the governor of this state, I will vote for the unity of this country. I will vote for anything that will unite Nigeria.
“I will not support anything that will divide Nigeria. And that is what necessitated the principle of live and let’s live. If only one person continues to live, things will not be good.
“It’s not about party, it is about Nigeria. I am a member of the PDP, an unrepentant member, who in fact, built this party when people ran away.”
He explained that he remained one of the arrowheads of those agitating for inclusivity in PDP because of his belief in unity.
The governor believes a strategic state like Rivers must not be relegated to playing second fiddle.
Speaking in Emohua, Wike said Atiku demarketed the state as unsafe by holding a town hall in Abuja.
He wondered why the candidate would still want votes from Rivers on Saturday.
Wike said nothing would stop him and Rivers voters from the decision they had already made on their preferred presidential candidate.
He said the people summoned and addressed by Atiku in Abuja over the weekend were not true Rivers sons and daughters.
He said if such people claimed otherwise, they should return home and be addressed by the presidential candidate.
Wike claimed it was an insult to Rivers and its people for anyone seeking their votes to summon them for a meeting outside of the state.
To the governor, if the PDP presidential flagbearer could not come to Rivers to address the people because he had labelled the place as unsafe, it would be morally wrong to seek votes from the state.
The governor said: “You are addressing Rivers people in Abuja, is that not an insult? You cannot come to Rivers State and talk to us.
“You say Rivers is not safe, but you want their vote. Rivers people will you allow that?”
“Those who declared our state to be unsafe are those who are seeking your vote. It is unfortunate. No right thinking Rivers will take that insult.
“I challenge all of you here to behave like true Rivers people to say nobody can buy you, nobody can summon you outside Rivers. If you want to talk to us, come to Rivers and talk to us.
“No amount of blackmail and intimidation can change our position. We want the unity of Nigeria.”
Wike said the people were prepared for Saturday’s election and would vote for the candidate who will guarantee equity, fairness and justice