The presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, Atiku Abubakar, has responded to the controversy surrounding the selection of his running mate, Ifeanyi Okowa, and his decision not to choose the Governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Wike.
The PUNCH reports that Atiku had, after announcing Okowa as his running mate, clarified that he picked the Delta governor because he (Okowa) had the qualities to be a President, adding that he “is a president-in-waiting.”
He said, “In arriving at the decision, I held wide consultations with various stakeholders in our party, including our governors, the national working committee, the board of trustees, and other leaders to seek their inputs and their wisdom.”
“In these consultations, I made clear that my running mate would have the potential to succeed me at a moment’s notice, that is, a president-in-waiting.
“In other words, the person must have the qualities to be President. The person must have an appreciation of the deep rot which our country has been put into by the rudderless All Progressives Congress government; understand the great suffering that most of our people are going through and the urgency of relieving them of that suffering; understand the critical importance of economic growth and development to provide our young people with jobs, hope, and a pathway to wealth.”
This was as he also said he had resorted to fasting and prayers to seek God’s direction after the emergence of Okowa as the running mate to Atiku ahead of Wike.
This is just as he disclosed that he still remains friends with his main challenger and presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress, Bola Tinubu.
Atiku stated this during an exclusive interview with Arise TV, which aired on Friday morning.
When asked about his relationship with Tinubu, who is a former Lagos State governor, Atiku explained that they still remain friends despite their political differences.
“I’m still a friend of his, and being friends with him doesn’t mean we can’t have our political differences,” Atiku said.
