Atiku also hailed Nigerians who signed a petition demanding that the US, UK and the EU should impose a visa ban on the Rivers State governor
By Kehinde Okeowo
Nigeria’s former Vice President and the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Atiku Abubakar, has advised the Governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Wike, against speaking under the influence of alcohol.
Atiku gave the words of caution in a statement issued by his Special Assistant on Public Communications, Phrank Shaibu, in Abuja, yesterday, while responding to comments made by the governor recently.
Wike who spoke at an event in Emohua Local Government Area last week said he was drinking alcohol while watching Atiku, PDP’s national chairman, Iyorchai Ayu, and other party members protest at the headquarters of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC.
“I called some of my friends and opened the 40-year-old whisky as they were protesting,” Wike told the gathering.
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Reacting to the governor’s comment through a statement issued on Sunday, Atiku said: “Governor Wike has confirmed what we all know. That he is a drunkard. The protest that was led by Waziri Atiku Abubakar on Monday, March 6, 2023, was against the stealing of the mandate of the Nigerian people, which in itself was a noble cause.
“For the sake of clarity, the protest occurred around 11.30am. Governor Wike says he was drinking whisky during the protest at 11.30am on a Monday. This reveals the sort of man he is – a dipsomaniac who abandons his official duties on Monday morning to binge on whisky.
“This explains the reason for his coarse voice, which is similar to that of a motor park tout. It is obvious that Governor Wike also dances under the influence of alcohol. No wonder it is characterised by aesthetic vulgarity.
“Wike’s vituperations and wailings” had nothing to do with ensuring that the South produced the next president.
“Wike’s grouse with Waziri Atiku Abubakar has nothing to do with zoning. He is only wailing because he lost the presidential ticket of the PDP in a fair contest. After losing, he deceived four other governors to join his futile campaign.
“Three governors of the G5 failed woefully at their senatorial elections, including Governor Okezie Ikpeazu, who, as a sitting governor, came a distant third in the Abia South senatorial election. For Governor Seyi Makinde, his ambition is hanging by a thread after his misadventure cost the PDP to lose all three senatorial elections.”
The statement observed the Rivers helmsman has not held a meeting with his colleagues “having dumped them since their defeat.”
It hailed Nigerians that have signed a petition demanding that the United States, the United Kingdom, and the European Union impose a visa ban on Wike.