Lere Olayinka, Senior Special Assistant on Public Communications and Social Media to the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister, Nyesom Wike, has dismissed as false the claim by former Vice President Atiku Abubakar that the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) committee tasked with selecting a vice-presidential candidate for the 2023 election ranked Delta State’s former governor, Ifeanyi Okowa, as its top choice.
Olayinka criticised Atiku for allegedly distorting facts, stating that it was unfortunate that he could not uphold the sanctity of the holy month of Ramadan by refraining from falsehood. He questioned how a committee would rate a candidate with two votes over one who secured 13 votes.
Atiku, in a recent interview, had claimed, “So in 2023, I told the party to set up a committee to recommend three names. The committee ranked Okowa as the top choice, with Wike in second place and former Akwa Ibom Governor, Udom Emmanuel, in third. So I picked number one.”
Reacting to this, Olayinka, in a statement on Saturday, insisted that Wike never put himself forward as Atiku’s running mate, but rather, Atiku made the offer, which Wike accepted with conditions.
“The committee set up by the PDP picked Wike as Atiku’s running mate, but for reasons best known to him, he settled for Okowa, who had two votes from the committee members. That’s the truth Atiku should tell and stand by, not trying to colour his decision with falsehood,” Olayinka stated.
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He further pointed out that for devout Muslims, Ramadan is a time of holiness and cited Islamic teachings on honesty, remarking, “Unfortunate, Atiku chose to tell lies so brazenly during the holy month of Ramadan, obviously forgetting that Allah (SWT) does not hearken to the prayers of liars, probably the reason he has continually failed in his desperation to be president of Nigeria.”
Olayinka, however, noted that Wike had moved on and was no longer interested in revisiting the events surrounding the 2023 election.
“Wike has no regret for Atiku not picking him as his running mate, and he also has no regret taking the position he took concerning the presidential election,” he added.
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