Wike, Ortom, Makinde missing as Atiku leads PDP campaign in Osun
Some state governors believed to be disgruntled as a result of the choice of Peoples Democratic Party presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar picking Delta state governor Ifeanyi Okowa as his running mate for the 2023 election, were missing during the party rally in Osun state on Thursday.
The rally was held in Osogbo, the capital of Osun, and the PDP asked residents to vote for Ademola Adeleke, the party’s governorship candidate when the election is held on Saturday and led by Atiku Abubakar, PDP presidential candidate, and Iyorchia Ayu, the party’s national chairman.
Others who were present at the rally included Bukola Saraki, former senate president, and four governors — Douye Diri of Bayelsa, Godwin Obaseki of Edo, Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto, and Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta.
However, Nyesom Wike, governor of Rivers, and his counterparts such as Samuel Ortom of Benue, Seyi Makinde of Oyo, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi of Enugu, and Okezie Ikpeazu of Abia, were absent from the rally.
Wike, Ortom, Makinde, Ugwuanyi, and Ikpeazu were named as vice-chairmen of the Osun PDP campaign council and it is not immediately clear why they were absent from the rally.
However, the development may not be unrelated to the recent happenings in the party.
The opposition party has been embroiled in rancour since Abubakar named Okowa as his running mate for the 2023 presidential election.
Some party stakeholders, including Ortom, had expressed concerns over Atiku’s decision to overlook Wike, who was recommended for the position by the party’s national working committee (NWC).
Wike placed second in the party’s presidential primary which took place in May.
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