Rita Odafe
Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State has denied reports that he worked against Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi by rigging the February 25 Presidential Election in the state. He expressed his disappointment in Peter Obi for claiming that he stood against him during the poll. Wike also stated that he never told Rivers people to vote for the President-elect, Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
At a media chat with journalists in Port Harcourt, the state capital, on Wednesday, Wike refuted claims that he rigged the elections to favour his preferred candidates at the Presidential, National Assembly, governorship and House of Assembly elections. He said that Rivers voted for the unity of Nigeria by voting for Tinubu at the presidential poll. Wike added that his goal from the outset of the presidential election was to ensure that the president came from the South.
The governor also said that he never campaigned against Peter Obi. He noted that in 2019, he was among those who chose Peter Obi for Atiku Abubakar, even though he was criticized for it. He emphasized that he had always been in support of a southern candidate in the Presidential Election.
At the end of the collation across States, Tinubu polled 8,794,726 votes to win the presidential election, while in Rivers State, he received 231,591 votes against Peter Obi’s 175,071 votes. Wike concluded by saying that it is incorrect to say he was against Peter Obi as he had always been in support of a southern candidate.
