Don’t pledge loyalty to PDP NWC, Wike tells newly-elected reps members

Rivers State Governor, Mr Nyesom Wike, has urged the recently elected National Assembly members in the state not to pledge loyalty to the Peoples Democratic Party National Working Committee, when inaugurated.

Wike said the party’s leadership did not contribute to the success of their elections, therefore, the lawmakers must only be concerned about the unity of the country and the interest of Rivers State.

Wike said this when the House of Representatives members-elect on the platform of the PDP visited him to present their certificates of return.

The governor said he is optimistic that the PDP in the state will perform well in the next election as it did in the February 25 polls, even as more groups endorse the party for the March 18 election.

Wike’s comments come a few hours after he took aim at the campaign team of the Peoples Democratic Party presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, over their protest of the outcome of the February 25 poll.

Atiku came second in the keenly contested presidential election, polling 6,984,520 votes, while winner Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress got 8,794,726 votes.

On Monday, the former Vice President led a “black uniform” protest to the national headquarters of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Abuja that also included the PDP National Chairman, Iyorchia Ayu; and Atiku’s running mate, Ifeanyi Okowa.

Following INEC’s declaration of Tinubu as the President-elect last Thursday, Atiku slammed the conduct of the elections, saying the umpire’s inability to upload results on the INEC Results Viewing Portal (IReV) is a “rape of democracy”.

But Wike mocked the PDP leaders while speaking at the commissioning of Igwuruta internal roads in the Ikwerre Local Government Area (LGA) of Rivers State.

“I won three of the Senate seats – three over three. Ask them, did they win three over three? You cannot win!” the governor said.