* You”re Playing Kindergarten Politics, Worsening PDP Crisis — Ugochinyere
* You’re A Political Hustler, Working For Your Paymasters In Rivers State -Wike
By Kolawole Ojebisi
The crisis rocking the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has led to a fiery exchange of words between the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike and a lawmaker Representing Ideato North and South Federal Constituency of Imo State, Ikenga Ugochinyere.
It was Ugochinyere who fired the first salvo while featuring on Channels TV political programme, ‘Politics Today’ on Friday.
The lawmaker had accused Wike of exacerbating the crisis rocking the PDP through his kindergarten politics.
“The way PDP is going and the role he (Wike) is playing in staying in APC doing APC work and insisting on ensuring that the leadership of the party must remain all points to the fact that he just wants to destroy PDP,” he said.
“It is not like he is the problem of PDP. The people I blame are some of the governors and PDP leaders who have not been man enough to stand up to stop this kindergarten politics.
“I don’t understand why you have a national chairman and secretary of a party who seem to be in bed with the ruling government and people seem to be comfortable with that and are filing cases in court to keep themselves in office,” he said.
But in a swift reaction to the accusation, Wike, through his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communications and New Media, Lere Olayinka, described Ugochinyere as a “political hustler” trying to satisfy his paymasters in Rivers State.
Wike noted that the lawmaker ought to be in jail for impersonation. A statement by Olayinka reads partly: “If PDP had functioned properly, would Ugochinyere have gotten the party’s ticket while still in another party? Even till today, as a PDP Rep member, Ugochinyere is still holding on to his Action Peoples Party APP, using it to cash out in Rivers State.
“Therefore, we on this side are not bothered because we understand why Ugochinyere must now mount the podium and accuse Wike of playing childish and kindergarten politics. He must satisfy those feeding him from the resources of Rivers State.”
He also mocked the lawmaker for always having an organisation to speak for to carry out his “political hustle.”
“In saner climes, such a character would have been arrested, tried and jailed for impersonation. When he got to the House of Representatives and there was no title under which his political hushpuppism would continue, he awarded to himself a non-existing title of ‘Spokesperson of Opposition Lawmakers Coalition in the 10th National Assembly,’ claiming to have been so appointed by the Coalition of United Political Parties.
“Being the political hustler that he has always been, Ugochinyere knew that he would be contravening the rules of the National Assembly by allocating to himself a non-existing position, but he just must have a title to keep his hustle going, and indeed, it has been booming,” the statement said.