…Lobbies Wike to cross carpet
The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers State has clarified its decision not to field candidates in Obio/Akpor, Port Harcourt City, and Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni local government areas during the recently concluded council elections, while renewing its call for the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, to join the party.
The party said its action was purely strategic, maintaining that it lacked the capacity to challenge the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in those areas, and that the decision eventually proved to be a successful move.
Rivers APC caretaker chairman, Tony Okocha, explained that the political reality in the state favored the PDP, particularly in LGAs where their candidates were widely seen as having performed well in office. According to him, contesting under such circumstances would have amounted to futility.
Okocha stressed that the decision was not a show of weakness but a pragmatic electoral approach.
He said: “There’s what they call comparative advantage during elementary economics and even international law alright. You don’t go and put your team in a place where you know that the answer to it will be failure. We didn’t have the strength to contend with the elections in Phalga because again, the man who was the PDP candidate was a mayor, was Chairman of Port Harcourt City local government council. And reports that reached us, were that he did perform extremely well and so that the people were going to pay him back.”
He emphasized that the decision was deliberate, noting: “I told you that we’re contesting elections, not to test the waters. We were contesting elections to win, it’s our own strategy not to field candidates in Onelga, Phalga and Obio/Akpor local government. It was a strategy. I mean what are you fielding candidates for in Obio/Akpor for. APC, fielding candidates in Obio/Akpor?”
On concerns about defections, Okocha said the party deliberately recruited politicians with strong records from the PDP, many of whom joined discreetly to avoid political tension.
He stated: “I’m sure you know what they call defection, Yes. Take for instance, how many political parties has Atiku Abubakar joined from 1999 to today, about seven or eight. And each time he jumps to another political party, he went to aspire to be president. So, has Nigerians killed him? PDP is in tatters, I don’t have to hide that very fact and you all know that the party is in tartars.”
Okocha concluded that the Rivers APC’s long-term objective was to consolidate its strength by attracting more political stakeholders, including Wike, whom he described as critical to the party’s ambitions.
He added: “The time is ripe. We’ll continue to be on on them, not even them alone. We’ll continue to beckon on the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Ezenwo Nyesom Wike, to come over to APC and have peace. PDP is in tatters.”
