Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, says supporting president-elect, Bola Tinubu, during the presidential election despite being a governor of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) does not amount to anti-party.
Speaking during a state banquet in honour of the President-elect in Port Harcourt, Wike said the PDP members who violated the constitution of the party should be accused of anti-party.
The governor said he decided to pitch his tent with Tinubu for the sake of Nigeria’s unity.
He said “We didn’t do anti-party, we supported the unity of Nigeria which is more important than any political party. Those who did anti-party are those who violated the provision of the constitution of their political party, they did anti-party.”
Wike said since they insisted that they “must obey the constitution of our party, we cannot be held for anti-party”.
He also said he had no regrets supporting Tinubu, urging people to rally round him to ensure the success of his government.
“As far as I’m concerned, I have no regrets. I will continue to say and I have told the president-elect, the elections have come and gone. You have finished that battle, the battle you have now is governance. What Nigerians want is good governance. If we want good governance, then we must rally round the president-elect.”
On the presidential election petitions challenging Tinubu’s victory, the governor said, “It’s only in Nigeria where I see if the opposition wins an election, that election was done well. It’s only in Nigeria I have seen that. If as a governor now, I contested Senate and I lose that election, they will say that election is free and fair. Why? Because the governor lost.
“But if I won, the governor has done everything. We saw governors who lost the election. Bola Tinubu lost Lagos -the presidential election, he lost Lagos, is it not correct?
“That election was free and fair in Lagos. Was it not free and fair in Lagos? Why? Because Bola Tinubu lost in Lagos. That is the kind of thing we do. If I lost election in Rivers state, they will say but we said it, his own time is over, how do you think Wike would have won? Now I won, don’t worry, they just manipulated.
“Look at states where governors lost elections, nobody is talking about it. That election was free and fair. Senators lost elections, that election, free and fair”