Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister Nyesom Wike yesterday dismissed as untenable calls by some Rivers State elders for him to apologise to a former governor of the state, Sir. Peter Odili, over his recent remarks on him.
Wike said he had done nothing wrong and vowed to resist bullying by anyone.
The minister who spoke during a new year luncheon he organised at his country home in Obio-Akpor for friends and associates, said all he did was to point out that the statement Odili made against him ought not to have been made by an elder statesman. …CONTINUE READING
“They said elders said I should apologise. Apologise for what?” he said.
“I said that I heard and I read that somebody who should be our elder statesman said this thing today and said a different thing tomorrow and I said no. No elder statesman should say that and the elder statesman didn’t say I didn’t say so. If he had said he didn’t say that I would have apologised. But he didn’t deny the statement.
“I didn’t abuse anybody. I said our elder statesman was the one telling people the kind of mansion and castle I built for him. I didn’t say I say so. It is not me who said it. It is the man who is supposed to be an elder statesman that said so.
You are the one going about telling people what I did.”
At the luncheon, a film clip of previous statements of Odili eulogizing Wike was played for the audience.
In one instance, Odili suggested that if it were within his power he would have supported Wike for a third term.
Wike said: “Based on the documentary you have watched; is there anywhere they said my family this or that. So where did I want to convert Rivers state to my personal estate?
“When my father is doing something wrong, should I not say papa this is not what you said yesterday. Is that to make him cry? I ran election for local government in 1999, and since then till now I have never lost election. Nobody whom I supported has ever lost election.”
Wike accused Odili of disobeying Tinubu on the Rivers peace deal and recalled how he personally drafted Fubara into the governorship race and worked for him to win the election.
He said: “They said I should apologise; for what? That there is no law that said their daughter should not, but I said as an elder statesman, should you have given what belongs to your nephew to your daughter?
“Did I say that there is a law that said that your daughter should not be something? But you said somebody converting Rivers State to his personal estate. It’s not correct, the man who is converting Rivers State to personal estate is you and to crown it up, you are now the general overseer.
“I didn’t say anything wrong, so you cannot kill me for what I didn’t say. Tinubu is not like you. If you are a good person Tinubu called Rivers people.As an elder statesman he wanted you to make peace, but you came home. Ordinarily,what you should have done was to call Mr. President back and tell him how you have tried to implement some of them, is there any way we can do the rest? Rather you disobeyed.”
Wike said it was unbelievable to hear Governor Siminalayi Fubara say there was no real person with him (Wike)and wondered if the governor was referring to the same people that had sleepless night to make him governor.
The minister mocked Fubara for referring to Uche Secondus, Senator Lee Meeba, Austine Opara, Abiye Sekibo and Celestine Omehia as the real Rivers people.
He claimed these were those who had vowed that he would never be governor of the state.
Wike recalled how he once brokered peace between Odili and some of the people now hailing him as their leader.
“All of them never saw Dr Peter Odili, until one day in my house through a bus; they never knew where I was going to.
“We drove to Odili’ s house. When we got there, he (Omehia) came down, Odili saw him and was angry. But I pleaded he should not be angry that what had happened had happened, that we should work as a team.
“I pleaded with him to forgive everyone, that we had taken him as our leader. He was not happy. Today, I am seeing all of them saying our revered leader; who is a revered leader now? You are now calling Odili your revered leader.
“If you follow my political history, it has never been easy; I have been charged for murder, for armed robbery just because of politics. There is nothing I have not passed through in my life. But I know at the end of the day we will overcome.
“Leadership is not easy, somebody said no face here, that is an insult. Look at a former Ambassador to South-Korea, former ambassador who produced a governor is not a face. Who are the faces: Omehia, Abiye, Secondus, these are persons who said he would not be governor, they are now faces?
“You didn’t want to be a governor, but somebody bought a form for you and said come fill it, bring it, go, you will be. You are saying that it will be well with such people. If it is the will of God, let thy will be done.”
Wike insisted that he had no regrets supporting President Bola Tinubu and recalled how his opponents collected money from former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar in 2023 but failed.
He said: “I have no regret supporting Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu to win election. All these ones making noise, they told Atiku, we will fight him. How can people who came out and said Fubara cannot be governor, he cannot talk before the public, today are now the ones saying we are with you in 2007.
Also speaking, a former Secretary to the Rivers State Government, Senator Magnus Abe, said politicians milling around Governor Fubara were doing so for personal gains and to alienate Wike.
“Nobody is with Governor Fubara because they love Rivers State or Governor Fubara. They are with him because they see him as a means to achieve their political goal — to bring down the FCT Minister,” he said.
He added:“In the last election, everyone in Rivers State did anti-party. With all due respect, I too did anti-party. I did not allow the SDP candidate to come and campaign here, and when he came to my house, I made it clear I was with Tinubu. Oga (Wike), you too did anti-party.
“You were very clear that you were with Tinubu, not the PDP presidential candidate. The current governor (Fubara) also did anti-party; he was with you and did not support the PDP presidential candidate,” Abe stated.
“The PDP leaders supporting Fubara today didn’t support the PDP governorship candidate, Governor Fubara. They supported the APC candidate. Likewise, the APC leaders did not support their presidential candidate but backed the PDP presidential candidate. So, everyone did anti-party, but the only one people keep talking about is the one done by Nyesom Wike, and that’s because he succeeded, and others failed.
“These politicians are pursuing their own interests. If tomorrow, you are no longer able to advance their agenda — to bring down Wike — they will abandon you and move on to someone else. My advice to you, sir, is to know that these people are not with you out of love for Rivers State. Those who truly love Rivers State will show it through their actions, not by plotting to bring down Wike.”
Former Edo State governor, Senator Adams Oshiomhole described Wike as a valuable minister and thanked the PDP for “giving us Nyesom Wike to help us fix Abuja.”
