Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential aspirant has been taken to the cleaners by Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State.

Wike said: “There’s nobody contesting for the presidency from the north that I do not have a relationship with…that I don’t support,” Wike told Channels.”

“And there’s no one of them who has not come to me, Wike, and said, ‘with you, I think I’ll have my way…but if you ask some of my friends, the problem I have with friendship is that if we agree on something, let’s keep to it.”

“If there’s any reason that it [such agreement] shouldn’t be done, I should be let know. I can tell for example, Saraki is one intelligent young man Nigerians must have to listen to.”

“Bukola Saraki, with all due respect, but ask him, I was one of those who made sure he became a Senate President. He was in APC, right? But I stood firm and said ‘look this young man is intelligent.”

“Whether you hate him or you don’t like him, this young man is intelligent and vibrant, why would you not allow such a person to be at the helm of affairs?”

“My friend Tambuwal, when he wanted to be Speaker, PDP never wanted him to be Speaker, but I was one of those who said no, you shouldn’t do that…even when he wanted to be President, I was one of those who said look, gentleman, this a vibrant young man, it doesn’t matter.”

“We must do this by age and people were fighting from the North, South West and East. They all fought me asking ‘why are you bringing Tambuwal? He’s somebody that has all it takes to lead.”

“I did not support Atiku for my reason that ‘look, Atiku listen, the way your antecedents, your politics, and I don’t think it’s good for them. I supported Tambuwal. But he [Atiku] won.”

“I want to challenge anybody, any governor or person in this party who would say they gave Atiku the support I gave him [in 2019]. I can say that in the South South, it was only in my state that APC didn’t get 25 percent.”

“I came all out to support him. That time we said it was for the North and nobody came out from the South to say no. I feel bad when they say, ‘this Northerner is following Wike… No one group can win an election without the other.”

“Nobody in the South can win an election without the North and nobody in the North can win an election without the South…”