ENUGU, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA)- The Northern youths have warned Ulama in the north who are using their places of worship to speak about the crises between Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State and Atiku Abubakar, the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), to stop henceforth or they would expose them.
Northern youths under the auspices of “Northern Youths Up For Wike”, are supporting Governor Wike against Atiku.
They said during a press conference in Kano, that, if Islamic clerics and imams, especially from the North, are interested in politics they should openly join a party, but for now should stay out of the Wike-Atiku crises because it is outside of their jurisdiction.
They explained that Wike was not working against a northerner being elected as president in 2023, but rather against the North producing, both the PDP National Chairman and the presidential candidate.
Making the assertion on Thursday at a press conference held at the Grand Central Hotel, Kano, Alhaji Abduljabbar Rufai, said that the Wike camp is fighting injustice and unfair treatment done to the Southern part of the country, by not allowing the region to have the national chairmanship position since the North has gotten the presidential slot.
His words: “The national chairman of the party, Senator Iyochia Ayu has proven not to be trustworthy to Nigerians because he promised us, we the members of the PDP, to resign his position, should a northerner emerged as party flagbearer, but now he is making excuses.
“The issue of the national chairman, has proven that Atiku lacks the ability to adequately assess internal issues and relationship management and these are skills that a leader must possess to tackle problems like the ASUU strike.
“On behalf of the entire team of Wike’s Voice up North, an initiative with the main objective of supporting and defending Wike against those that are trying to make PDP a regional party, [contrary to the] provisions of the PDP Constitution [which] was deliberately made the way it is, to promote equity and fairness in the party structure, we want to commend Gov Wike and show our tireless support for his political principles because he has earned our trust.“
He noted further that Wike “is the strongest pillar in today’s PDP…Therefore this agitation is not about him, but for the benefit of the party in general.”
He said that Wike’s loyalty to the party is proven beyond all reasonable doubt as he has not abandoned the party as others did in 2014.
Rufai called on all stakeholders to do the needful by telling Senator Ayu to honorably resigned as the national chairman of the party and pave way for a southern candidate to step in.