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Akinwande Soji-Ojo
Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, has explained why he did not pick Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, as his running mate.
While speaking on Arise TV on Friday, Atiku said he picked Delta State Governor, Ifeanyi Okowa, as his running mate because he wanted someone he could work amicbly with.
The PDP candidate had picked Okowa as his running mate despite the party’s national working committee (NWC) endorsing Wike for the position.
The decision had created a crisis within the PDP, with a some aggrieved stakeholders threatening to work against the party.
But Atiku said he opted for Okowa instead of Wike because he wanted someone that could “deliver the policies of the party, and also try to unify the country.”
“Governor Wike was not rejected. Nobody was rejected in the party. But you must understand that it’s the prerogative of the candidate to pick his running mate. A running mate he believes he can work with amicably, and then also deliver the policies of the party, and also try to unify the country.
“Governor Wike is a brilliant politician. He’s courageous, tenacious. I believe he has a future in the political evolution of this country. It’s not a question of rejection. Certainly, not. I think it’s too harsh a word to say that we rejected governor Wike. Certainly not.”