Rattled by Tuesday’s meeting between Nyesom Wike and Bola Tinubu, the presidential candidate of the ruling APC, Atiku Abubakar, presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), on Wednesday left for the United Kingdom in an attempt to resolve the lingering face-off with the Rivers state governor.
According to sources familiar with the arrangement, Atiku is scheduled to meet with Wike on Thursday.
“The PDP presidential candidate headed for London today after arriving Paris yesterday. He is billed to meet with Wike tomorrow in an attempt to resolve the issues between them,” a source told an online publication.
The source further stated that associates close to the PDP presidential candidate are not happy with the way in which Sule Lamido, former governor of Jigawa, and Babangida Aliyu, former governor of Niger, have criticised Wike and they want Abubakar to call them to order, another insider said.
In an interview with Channels Television on Tuesday, Lamido said: “We should forget about Wike.”
“Wike is an individual, I don’t think because he is a governor there he has control and monopoly over the peoples of Rivers,” the former Jigawa governor had said.
Abubakar’s desperate move to resolve the issues between him and Wike came a day after Bola Tinubu, presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), met with the Rivers governor in Paris, France.
Samuel Ortom, governor of Benue; Seyi Makinde of Oyo, Okezie Ikpeazu of Abia, and other PDP stalwarts loyal to the Rivers governor also attended the meeting on Tuesday.
The PDP has been in crisis since Wike lost the PDP presidential primary election in May to former vice-president Atiku Abubakar.
The crisis in the party escalated after Atiku chose Ifeanyi Okowa, governor of Delta, as his running mate ahead of Wike, the choice of many PDP leaders.
Both men met weeks ago but they were not able to broker a truce.
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