Wike has no link with militants - PDP

The Rivers State chapter of the People Democratic Party (PDP) yesterday said Governor Nyesom Wike did not mobilise militants to Edo State ahead of the September 28 election.



The party said the allegation was aimed at blackmailing the governor.

It said Wike had no link with militants and could not mobilise them to Edo State for the poll.

The Rivers PDP said Wike only advised the Edo electorate to vote for its candidate, defend their vote and ensure that their votes counted.

Addressing reporters yesterday at the party’s secretariat in Port Harcourt, the state capital, the state’s PDP Publicity Secretary Samuel Nwanosike said Wike could not be deterred by what he called cheap blackmail and allow his party to be manipulated.

The PDP accused Edo State Governor Adams Oshiomhole of desperation to win an election he knew his party would lose.

The party said the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in Edo State had lost its popularity, adding that instead of giving excuses and pointing finger, it should wait till the Election Day to see which party was more popular in the state.

PDP said: “Wike has no link with militants. The statement credited to Oshiomhole shows that he is a desperate man who is looking for a way out. There is no truth that Wike and Delta State Governor Ifeanyi Okowa provided N2 billion for the Edo State governorship election…”

On Wike’s amnesty programme in Rivers State, the PDP said the governor was not giving financial support to cultists or militants but beginning a move that would improve their lives.

He said: “At APC rally in Bonny, one of the chieftains accused Wike of giving money to cultists and militants in the name of amnesty. We are here to say that the governor cannot exchange the livelihood of the youths, which is paramount, to a mere stipend.

“Governor Wike is a man who understands the plight of his people. He knows what is good for these boys. He doesn’t want to give them money but an empowerment that could last forever. That was why the call for amnesty was necessary.”