29th June, 2022
Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue State on Wednesday said he is still praying and fasting to know if God wants him to support the PDP presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar or not.
Ortom, a PDP governor is not happy over the selection of Delta State Governor, Ifeanyi Okowa ahead of his Rivers State counterpart, Nyesom Wike.
In an interview on Arise TV on Wednesday, Ortom, when asked if he was supporting Atiku for the presidency, simply said: “I told you I am praying. I have gone into hibernation and I am fasting and praying. So, in the end, if God directs me to support Atiku, why should I not do it? After all, he is my party man.”
He said his friend, Wike deserved the vacation after what he had gone through, saying that he and others believed Wike had the capacity and charisma to lift this country from bottom to top compared to what had been happening.
According to him, the PDP had been taken from the top in 2015 to the bottom since this present administration came into power, saying that he and some others believed that Wike had the capacity but the PDP people did not give him the opportunity.
“Some of us rooted for him. I was amongst the 17-member committee that was set up by the candidate himself and the party and some of us said that for the vice presidency of the party, we needed Wike to be the vice president so that he can bridge the gap.
“We (the committee) said it does not matter whether he supported the presidential candidate or not, all we are looking for is unity and how we can make things work. Unfortunately, it was said that it is Governor Ifeanyi Okowa who is also a PDP member. And that is the wisdom of the presidential candidate,” he lamented.
Ortom added that “Some of us have resorted back to prayers because I am really confused. I felt that Wike would have been the vice-presidential candidate of the party after losing the presidential ticket to Atiku. He was the second person to Atiku and Wike has the charisma.
“All of us have our weak spots. Wike can be ‘something something’, but when it comes to mobilisation, impact, value addition and reaching out, and making sure that the party works, Wike is an instrument. Wike is somebody who stood for the party and makes sure that things work.”
He stated that he and some others believed in him but that unfortunately, it was somebody else who was chosen as the party is supreme.
“But for some of us, now I have resorted to prayers and if you haven’t seen me in Turkey, it is because I am praying. I have resorted to prayers: Lord God, where do we go from here? Where is our country going and what is our problem?
“I tell you as a Christian, that I believe that power belongs to God. John 3:27 says “A man can receive nothing except it is given to him from above”. If God says it is Atiku and if God says it is whoever, that is all,” he said.