Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has opened up on why he did not pick former Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike as his running mate in 2023 general election. Recall that Wike lost the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, presidential ticket for the 2023 election to Atiku Abubakar.
Some party stakeholders were optimistic that after losing the ticket to Atiku, Wike could be the choice for the running mate, but Atiku opted for the former Delta State Governor, Ifeanyi Okowa instead.
Many political commentators believe that it’s the singular decision that led to current face-off between Atiku and Wike, who is now the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT.
In a yet-to-be-aired interview for a television show, Untold Stories, with Adesuwa Giwa-Osagie, scheduled for broadcast today, Wednesday, Atiku disclosed how party leaders accused him of not making a wider consultation before picking former Governor of Anambra State, Peter Obi as his running mate in the build-up of 2019 general election.
Atiku said, “They said I did not consult with the party enough. So in 2023, I threw the whole thing to the party. I said, ‘Okay, set up a committee and recommend three people for me to pick as a running mate”.
According to the former vice president, the party committee submitted three names with Ifeanyi Okowa as the first choice, Wike as the second and former Akwa Ibom State Governor, Udom Emmanuel as the third.
“So I picked number one,” he said, adding that his decision not to pick Wike was simply because he was the second choice on the list.
However, Atiku, who had run for the presidency a record six times, disclosed he had no regrets about not picking Wike.
“No, not at all,” he concluded.
