3rd May, 2023
The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers has said its has nothing to do with the scheduled two- day visit of President-Elect, Bola Tinubu to the State at the invitation of Governor Nyesom Wike.
Tinubu, who was elected on the platform of APC is due to be in Rivers State on Wednesday and Thursday during which he is expected to commission a flyover and a court building constructed by Governor Wike’s administration.
Already, the Rivers Governor has declared Wednesday as a public holiday as he urged the people to come out in their large number to receive Tinubu.
But in a statement on Tuesday, the spokesperson of APC in Rivers, Darlington Nwauju, said the party has nothing to do with the visit.
According to his, Tinubu’s visit is private one the invitation of Governor Wike.
“We challenge the Governor being an outgoing governor (Mr Wike) to play less divisive politics and exercise restraint in planting seeds of discord amongst opposition political parties.
“We are aware that the governor has been working so hard to paint a false perception of the collapse of the APC structure in Rivers State even when he had in previous well-documented interviews vowed never to have anything to do with a “cancer party (APC),” Mr Nwauju said.
However, Nwauju claimed that Rivers APC was aware of Wike’s plot to prank our President-elect into believing his false narrative that there is no other opposition political party existing in Rivers State.”
But he said “Rivers people already know this is not the correct situation on the ground.”
The Rivers APC spokesperson insisted that the party is focused on pursuing justice by challenging the outcome of the flawed 18 March elections at the Elections Petitions Tribunal and cannot be distracted by the antics of Gov. Wike and his co-travellers.
Recall that Wike has recently visited Tinubu,in Abuja alongside his Oyo State counterpart, Gov. Seyi Makinde, visited Tinubu.
Speaking to journalists during the visit, the Rivers governor, who is a chieftain of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), said Nigerians were anxiously waiting for the May 29 inauguration of the President-elect.
Wike said: “Elections are gone and a winner has emerged and therefore all Nigerians must rally round and give him (Tinubu) necessary support.
“Everybody is waiting for May 29 to see that the President-elect is inaugurated and he hits the ground running to make sure that Nigerians get what they expected.
“I have confidence that Tinubu has what it takes to turn Nigeria around. I have confidence in him.”