The Governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Wike, and his Benue counterpart, Samuel Ortom, have given an insight into their meetings with three leading presidential candidates – Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu and Mr. Peter Obi.
The governors spoke on Friday upon arrival at the Port Harcourt International Airport, from London, United Kingdom.
Recall that Wike, Ortom, Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State and Governor Okezie Ikpeazu of Abia State met Tinubu, who is the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), on Monday in Paris, France.
On Thursday, in London, UK, the team met Obi, who is the Labour Party (LP) candidate, in the company of former President Olusegun Obasanjo before meeting Atiku, who is the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate.
Giving an insight into the meetings, Wike said it was in the interest of Nigeria.
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“For whatever it’s worth, consultation is ongoing. Whatever we are talking about, is in the interest of Nigeria and Nigerians. It is not parochial and tied to one person or group of persons. We believe that with what is going on, it will be in the interest of Nigerians at the end of the day.
“Consultation is still ongoing. Never mind some people who do not believe in the existence of this country. Leadership is not about you and your family. Leadership is about everybody.
“It’s unfortunate that we are in a country now where a man finishes eight years as a governor and brings his own son as a governor too and as a member of the national assembly.
“It is only in this part of the world that you can see that when we are talking about poverty everywhere. These are people who do not mean well to this Nigeria.
“The only identity they have in this country is religion and ethnicity, nothing more. It’s either, I’m a Christian or I’m a Muslim, I’m a Fulani or I’m an Igbo. Nigeria cannot move forward except they think it will be them. That’s where we are.
“We are in a country where someone with a primary school certificate can be appointed minister of foreign affairs. That tells you how bad this country has become.
“But with our consultations, all these will be a thing of the past. No amount of intimidation or blackmail will deter us. We are determined to right the wrong,” Wike said.
On his part, Ortom, who led the delegation, said that the three separate meetings were worthwhile and fruitful.
He said that the meetings were necessary because Nigeria is in distress and well-meaning individuals must cooperate to rescue it from the precipice.
“For us, we are looking at the larger picture. Nigeria today is in distress. It is about what can we do. No man or woman alone can get it right for our country.
“We are looking at how we can harness ideas and put ourselves together to ensure that we get out of the present challenge we are in Nigeria today.
“From top to bottom, consider what has happened from 2015 and where we are today. So, what we are doing is a concern that we have for our country, Nigeria.
“This is beyond partisan politics. We are looking on how we can come together and find a way of ensuring that Nigeria survives. Nigeria is on drip, Nigeria is on oxygen and it is about how can we get out of this,” Ortom said.
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