I have no cause to insult Tinubu—Wike
Barth Ndubuwah,Port Harcourt
The governor of Rivers State, Barr. Nyesom Wike said he has so much respect for the National Leader of the All Progressives Congress(APC) and former governor of Lagos State, Chief Ahmed Tinubu, therefore, has no reason or cause to insult him.
Wike was reacting to a publication in one of the national dailies which purported that the Rivers State governor said that Tinubu cannot see the gate of the presidency in 2023, talk less of becoming the president of the country.
In a statement issued in Port Harcourt by the Special Assistant (SA) on Media to the governor, Mr Kelvin Ebiri, he debun ked the said publication, saying, “the attention of the Governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Ezenwo Wike, has been drawn to false assertions attributed to him in an article written in The Guardian by Emmanuel Ande on February 5, 2021, titled: ‘Tinubu cannot see presidency gate in 2023, says Wike.’
“We wish to affirm that it is true that Governor Wike was in Yola, the capital of Adamawa State on February 4, to inspect some projects being executed by Governor Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri. And while inspecting the Greater Interchange and Underpass in Yola, some journalists requested for an interview which he graciously obliged them.
“The questions asked ranged from the purpose of his visit; the prospects of the Peoples Democratic Party winning the 2023 general election and Nigeria’s rating in the global corruption index recently published by Transparency International.
“At no time during the interview session that lasted about five minutes did Governor Wike mention the names of Chief Tinubu and the APC’s former national chairman, Adams Oshiomhole, or even alluded to them.
“We, therefore consider the report by Mr Emmanuel Ande as preposterous, fabricated, malicious and intended to inflame relationship between Governor Wike and Chief Tinubu, whom the Rivers Chief Executive holds in high esteem.
“We wish to state without equivocation, that irrespective of political affiliation, Governor Wike has enormous respect for Chief Tinubu and will never say or do anything to malign the hard earned reputation of the elder statesman. The report by Mr Ande is mischievous and aimed to discredit The Guardian,”the statement said.
The SA also accused the reporter of probably acting as hireling of some treacherous political actors, who often capitalize on the susceptibility of some journalists to manipulate them to publish misleading or factually incorrect information for political purposes.
“We dare the reporter to provide any evidence to prove the veracity of his fabricated report,” the statement said.
