By Kolawole Ojebisi
Rivers State governor, Chief Nyesom Wike has taken a swipe at the National leadership of the All Progressive Congress (APC) over the disqualification of Edo State Governor, Mr Godwin Obaseki from the APC’s governorship primary race by a screening committee set up by the party.
Chief Wike said he can’t understand why Obaseki was disqualified by the APC from seeking a second term ticket under the party’s platform over his certificate.
Wike who took to his Twitter Handle @GovWike, pointed out that it was an irony that Obaseki was disqualified by someone who do not have a certificate.
The governor, who hosted Obaseki in Port Harcourt on Sunday, had earlier said he will be happy if the embattled governor of Edo State pitches his political tent with the People’s Democratic Party (PDP)
Recall that Professor Jonathan Ayuba-led APC screening committee had screened out Obaseki from the June 22 governorship primary of the party over inconsistencies on his certificate from the Institute of Continuous Education and wrongful spelling of his name on his NYSC certificate.
The development comes on the heels of power tussle between Obaseki and Oshiomhole ahead of the state governorship election coming up in September.
Obaseki met with Wike on Sunday to perfect his defection talks to the PDP and scale down some conditions given by the party as Governor Wike’s influence on the PDP cannot be overemphasized. This explains why Obaseki is leaving no stone unturned to get his full support over his planned defection.
Recall that apart from being one of the most influential governors in PDP, Mr Wike publicly said he funded the election of the Bayelsa governor, Douye Diri.