When asked why he did not choose Nyesom Wike, the incumbent Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), to be his running partner in the 2023 election, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar said he had no regrets.
Atiku answered questions about the leadership crisis in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) that followed his selection in an upcoming interview for the television program Untold Stories with Adesuwa Giwa-Osagie, which is scheduled to air today but was obtained by Daily Trust.
Numerous analysts conjectured that Atiku’s election defeat was influenced by the choice to ignore Wike, who had spearheaded a rebellion within the PDP with five other governors. Later, Wike boasted that he had worked against Atiku and delivered Rivers State to President Bola Tinubu.
Atiku firmly said, “No, not at all,” when asked if he regretted not choosing Wike.
In reference to the criticism he received in 2019 for supposedly not consulting many people when choosing Peter Obi as his running partner, Atiku clarified that his choice was based on the procedure used inside the party.
After obtaining the PDP ticket in Port Harcourt, Atiku revealed that he spoke with former President Olusegun Obasanjo, who suggested that he choose a running mate from the South-East rather than the South-West.
According to Atiku, Obasanjo proposed well-known individuals like Charles Soludo and Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, but neither was a PDP member.
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In the end, Atiku selected party member Peter Obi, who was also recommended by Obasanjo. Atiku received assurances that there were no objections to Obi being selected as his running partner after speaking with governors and party officials, including Wike and Aminu Tambuwal. He later faced criticism, though, for not consulting the party enough.
In 2023, Atiku said, he made the decision to include the party in the selection process more, asking them to form a committee to suggest three potential running mates.
According to Atiku, the committee recommended three names: Udom Emmanuel as the third, Wike as the second, and Ifeanyi Okowa as the first.
Wike was the second pick on the list, which is why Atiku chose Okowa, the first candidate.
