Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has mocked Nyesom Wike, the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), saying that he gave him a resounding defeat in the 2023 primaries in Abuja.
Atiku who was reacting to comments made by the former Rivers State Governor regarding his prospects of becoming the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate in the 2027 elections.
It will be recalled that Wike had during a press conference in Abuja on Wednesday, declared that Atiku wouldn’t be permitted another shot at the PDP’s presidential ticket.
The minister alleged that Atiku was lobbying for another opportunity, adding, “He is lobbying for another chance, but the chance won’t be there. In which party? How can we rely on one man for so many years?”
The former Vice President in a response through his Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, dismissed Wike’s remarks, reminded him of past political defeats and cautioning against premature politicking.
He said, “If Wike had the power to distribute presidential tickets like party favours, he’d certainly have kept one for himself,” Atiku’s aide remarked. “After all, Atiku thoroughly schooled him and his chosen protégé in his own backyard during the 2019 election and handed him a resounding defeat in the 2023 primaries in Abuja.”
Shaibu, while calling out Wike’s apparent contradiction, noted that while the Minister publicly claims that the incumbent President Bola Tinubu is destined to win in 2027, he remains fixated on Atiku’s future candidacy.
“Isn’t it too early in the day for that? Our focus should be on the real issues—the worsening conditions of living for Nigerians,” Shaibu stated.
“This hunger is becoming unbearable; it’s what we should be addressing, not political maneuvers for 2027.”
People are of the view that the exchange only highlights ongoing tensions within the PDP as members and stakeholders strategise for the next electoral cycle.
The former Vice President, two-time PDP presidential candidate, appears unfazed by the internal criticism and remains focused on broader national issues.
The presidential candidate of the PDP in the 2023 general elections has repeatedly stated that his priority is in addressing Nigeria’s socio-economic challenges rather than engaging in what he called, “premature politicking.”
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