Rivers State Governor Nyeson Wike has declared his intention to contest the 2023 presidential election on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Wike announced this yesterday when he visited his Benue State counterpart, Samuel Ortom at the Government House Makurdi, the state capital.
The governor said he is the one man to wrest power from the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) for the economic well-being of Nigerians.
“This is the first time I am making my intention to contest for the presidency publicly because I look at Benue as my second home. To remove APC from power, I’m the person who can tell them enough is enough. We must take this power and I’m ready to take it for the PDP. God is with us, that is why APC keeps failing everyday,” he said.
The presidential hopeful, who urged PDP stakeholders to give him the mandate and not to sell their votes, said he has the capacity to, “face this evil government.”
He queried those founding fathers who ran away from the party and still want to be recognised as the party’s best candidate, saying, “ by the time you ran away, you sold your share as a founding father, so you can no longer retain your position of founding fathers.
“I stood for this party. I have worked for this party since 1998. I have nowhere to run to and that’s why anything that happens to this party, I take it personally. I have never relented, In 2015, those who ran away made us lose the election. Today, they are crying but some of us stood and said PDP will not die.
“Some people want to use Nigeria to buy back their personal business. They talk about the private sector. Mention the private business that survives. Is it a bank that your father had? Everybody is an employer of labour. Even in my house I have 50 people who feast on me.
“They should stop deceiving us. I have performed as a governor and carry my shoulders high anywhere. I have the capacity to face this evil government. Just give me the mandate. I will speak the truth to power and nothing but the truth. I have the capacity to move this country forward,” he said.
The presidential hopeful also promised that if elected, security would be his topmost priority.
In his response, Governor Ortom promised to do whatever he can to ensure that Wike becomes the president of the country in 2023.