Face your ministerial job, leave Wabara alone, PDP group replies Wike

By Steve Oko

A group known as PDP Frontiers for Change and Progress has told the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Mr Nyesom Wike, to focus on his ministerial job and stop his unprovoked attacks on the Chairman, Board of Trustees (BoT), of the Peoples Democratic Party, Senator Adolphus Wabara.

The group was reacting to Wike’s recent media chat where he threw jabs at the former Senate President, accusing him of campaigning for the Labour Party, LP-led administration of Governor Alex Otti of Abia State.

Wike had during the chat said he was surprised that people were not blaming Wabara whom he accused of campaigning for Gov. Otti’s re-election, but were quick to crucify him (Wike) for openly supporting President Tinubu.

Firing back at the FCT Minister, the PDP group, said “Wike lacks the moral rectitude to criticise Senator Wabara for applauding the developmental strides of his State Governor, when he (Wike), a supposed PDP chieftain, is busy championing the re-election bid of President Ahmed Tinubu, a member of another party.”

National Coordinator of the group, Mr Emeka Yellow Ikpegbu, in a statement, lambasted Wike for what he called “his obsession for castigating the PDP BoT Chairman without justification”.

Ikpegbu who dismissed Wike’s outburst against Wabara as “mischievous”, expressed shock that the former Rivers’ Governor “is accusing another person of what himself is guilty of”.

The group wondered how “Wike sees his (Wike’s) support for Tinubu as normal but Wabara’s commendation of a performing Governor of his state as a punishable offence”.

Ikpegbu, a former Commissioner in the Abia State Oil Producing Area Development Commission, ASOPADEC, argued that Wabara’s commendation of Gov. Otti “for fixing the all-important Port Harcourt Road Aba, which was neglected by the former administration, did not in any way amount to campaigning for Otti as misconstrued by Wike and his co-travellers.”

The statement read in part:” Why does Wike, who masquerades as an apostle of truth, derive pleasure in castigating and disparaging Senator Wabara for speaking the truth?

“When has telling the truth become a crime? PDP lost Abia in 2023 because Wike chose not to speak truth to power. Courageous elders like Wabara anda few others who spoke out were hated and chastised. Today, we all know better.

” Wike should be told that commending a Governor who achieved a milestone is the mark of statesmanship and not anti-party. Governance should be detached from politics, and Wike cannot feign ignorance of this”.

The PDP group asked Wike to leave the former Senate President alone and stop making him the subject of his endless media chats.

It further challenged Wike to tackle the various challenges of Abuja residents, “instead of engaging in unnecessary media showmanship”.

“Wike should be reminded that performance is not measured by frequency of live media chats but by tangible metrics with positive impacts on residents”, the group said.

The group cautioned Wike to show respect for the office of the BoT Chairman and stop castigating the former Senate President because of his calm disposition.

“It’s on record that Wike had sometime this year, boasted that if Senator Wabara were to be his father, he would have long disowned him. How can an Honourable Minister be making unguarded utterances and vituperations against an elder statesman and former number three citizen of this country? Politics should not be taken personal.”

The group urged Wabara and other patriotic members of the party “currently engaged in efforts to rebuild the PDP” not to fall for any distractions.

” As BoT Chairman, Senator Wabara and his fellow patriots in the party, have demonstrated their genuine commitment towards rescuing the PDP from the ambushment of political polygamists, and traitors who glory in destroying the house that once sheltered them.

” We are yet to see similar commitments by the likes of Wike who claim to be chieftains of the PDP but are dinning with the APC. These traitors should not think that those using them to destroy PDP will ever trust them for any serious business.

“Those who think the PDP will be destroyed by their treachery should think twice as progressive elements in our great party are firm in their resolve to reposition PDP for victory ahead of 2027.

“Contrary to the predictions of nay sayers and prophets of doom, PDP is fast on the recovery path. PDP is ready to offer Nigerians a credible alternative for good governance in 2027, and this is the nightmare of the APC moles whose only agenda is to destabilise PDP”