Chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Bode George has opened up about his fallout with Nyesom Wike, whom he once supported against Atiku Abubakar.
George, a member of the party’s Board of Trustees, stated that his initial alliance with Wike was not personal but based on his disapproval of how the party handled its zoning arrangement ahead of the 2023 presidential election.
Speaking on Arise TV, George blamed Atiku and the former PDP national chairman, Iyorchia Ayu, for the internal crisis that rocked the party. He accused them of disregarding the PDP’s zoning principles by allowing both the party’s presidential candidate and its chairman to emerge from the northern region.
“The presidential candidate went to the northern zone, and the chairman of the party also went to the same zone; we said no, it can’t happen like this,” George said.
He explained that before siding with Wike, he had tried to make Atiku and Ayu see reason but was ignored. His support for Wike was based on his frustration with how the PDP leadership managed the party’s affairs during the convention. George noted that he felt the party had been unfair in its decision-making, which led him to stand with Wike and his faction.
However, his association with Wike’s group did not last long. George said he distanced himself from them when he realized they were leaning towards supporting Bola Tinubu, the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
“And when Wike people came, we had a meeting, and they made me a leader. In the end, we had two presidential candidates from the South, and they said they believed that Bola was the better person.
“I told them that if they stepped out of this meeting and talked about it outside there, I would counter you. You guys have no idea who this gentleman (Tinubu) is. He had ruled my state (Lagos), and we know his modus operandi,” George added.
