- Rivers governor calls for unity in party over presidential candidate
Bayelsa State Governor, Senator Douye Diri, and his Rivers State counterpart, Chief Nyesom Wike, have said the chances of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) producing the President of Nigeria in 2023 was very bright.
Both governors who spoke yesterday, when Wike visited Diri at the Government House in Yenagoa, agreed that only the PDP could rescue Nigeria from its present state of insecurity and economic woes.
Diri, who described the presidency as a sacred office, said the PDP has been repositioned to ensure it wins the presidency in the 2023 general election.
A statement by Diri’s Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Daniel Alabrah, quoted him as saying that the PDP was the only party with the pedigree to give Nigerians hope and a sense of direction.
He said: “The presidency is one sacred office and we must do everything to protect it and ensure that our party clinches victory at the 2023 general polls.
“The number one thing for our party is our unity. Second is who becomes president. We have a capable national chairman that can steer us back to power come 2023.”
Commending Wike for demonstrating leadership and purposeful governance, the governor stressed that states in the Niger Delta needed to unite more to tackle their common challenges, particularly in the areas of environmental pollution and underdevelopment.
“Bayelsa and Rivers states are brothers and sisters historically and culturally and if anyone is trying to divide us, we must come against them.
“I call on Ijaw leaders to come together and resolve whatever issues we may have amicably. Within a family, we will always have issues but that should not remove our brotherliness,” Diri said.
He stressed the need for more consultations between him and his Rivers counterpart towards strengthening their bond of unity.
Diri also commended Wike for his role in ensuring the repositioning of the PDP, describing him as s committed party man.
In his remarks, Wike expressed confidence that the PDP would produce the next president of Nigeria.
Wike said Nigerians were waiting for the party to rescue them from the current situation in the country, stressing that leaders and members of the party cannot afford to miss this opportunity.
Wike emphasised the need for unity of purpose between Bayelsa and Rivers and the entire PDP, saying without a united front success would be elusive.
The Rivers governor lauded his Bayelsa counterpart for his developmental efforts and commitment to the party and urged people of the state to continue to support him.
“Today, I came to let everybody know that Senator Douye Diri is one of the governors I can tell you has showed commitment even though he is new and he believes in the development of his state. I am not someone that will come and say what is not correct.
“I have also come to tell him that everybody must work together to make the PDP united because without party there cannot be presidential candidate. Let us all unite.
“Nigerians are waiting for PDP and we cannot afford to miss this opportunity. As governors, we must work together.
“Anybody can be presidential candidate but if we are not united it cannot be possible,” Wike said.
The Rivers governor was accompanied on the visit by a delegation that included a former Rivers Governor, Chief Celestine Omehia, two former Deputy Speakers of the House of Representatives, Austin Opara and Prince Chibudom Nwuche as well as a former Minister of Transport, Chief Abiye Sekibo.
