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Lastest News Nigeria, Politics, Business, Sport, Interview
Lastest News Nigeria, Politics, Business, Sport, Interview
|By Adejumo Adekunle-
-Former Benue governor recounts thwarted push for southern candidacy
-Claims 16-man committee voted Wike as Atiku’s running mate
Former Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom, has opened up on how he and four other governors within the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) fought hard for the emergence of Nyesom Wike as the party’s presidential candidate ahead of the 2023 general election.
Ortom, who spoke during an interview on Arise Television’s Morning Show on Thursday, said the push for Wike’s candidacy was a collective decision by the group known as the G5 or Integrity Governors. The bloc included Ortom (Benue), Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi (Enugu), Okezie Ikpeazu (Abia), Seyi Makinde (Oyo), and Nyesom Wike (Rivers).
He revealed that after Wike lost the party’s primary election, they shifted their campaign to have him selected as the running mate to the PDP flagbearer, Atiku Abubakar. Ortom said he served on a 20-member committee set up to recommend a suitable vice-presidential candidate, and that 16 members backed Wike for the slot.
“We fought for Wike to be the presidential candidate. Unfortunately, he didn’t get it. We thought he should be the running mate, and people thwarted it,” Ortom said.
He described politics as a game of interests, emphasizing that all their efforts were based on protecting regional and personal interests. According to Ortom, the committee’s recommendation for Wike was ultimately ignored by the party’s leadership, despite a majority endorsement.
“Politics is about interest—no permanent friend, no permanent enemy,” he said. “Where your interest is not protected, you find something else.”
Ortom added that although their preferred outcomes were not achieved, he still maintains a cordial relationship with Wike and believes in his leadership capacity.
Their push for a southern presidential candidate, Ortom explained, was rooted in the principles of equity and fairness, following President Buhari’s eight years in office as a northerner.
