The Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, has offered reasons why he has remained at loggerheads with the leadership of his party, Peoples Democratic Party.
The Rivers State’s helmsman offered the explanation on Monday when media houses delegations visited him.
Speaking at the Government House in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital, Wike went down memory lane to recall how the party betrayed his trust and confidence when the convention committee reopened a foreclosed window to allow a presidential aspirant, Governor Aminu Waziri Tambuwal of Sokoto State, to relaunch a campaign after all the aspirants had spoken.
He said Tambuwal did not only announce his withdrawal from the race, which is of no offence to him, but was allowed to instruct his supporters on who to vote for.
Wike said the PDP presidential primaries was completely marred by irregularities by the fact that Tambuwal was allowed to launch a fresh campaign after all the aspirants were given the time to speak and voting was about to begin.
He said he decided to forge ahead despite the fraud perpetrated by his party, believing that equity will be done in the holding of party positions and that its National Chairman, Iyorchia Ayu, will resign as he promised.
He explained how he could have taken up legal action against the PDP, but for the love he has for the party, he sacrificed a lot to rebuild when it was abandoned.
He said while he has not reneged on his promise at the convention ground to support whoever that emerges as the candidate, the other party must also fulfil its promise.
Wike said he cannot join the PDP presidential campaign to tell lies about its prospect to do things differently in the country when its leadership has not been able to effect minor internal changes.
He spoke confidently that no amount of threat and blackmail will deter him from speaking the truth, declaring boldly that he is not “a move-about politician”.