APC Governors’ Visit: Look Before You Leap—SERG Warns Wike

By Dipo Olowookere

The Governor of Rivers State, Mr Nyesom Wike, has been advised not to make moves that could render his political useless after the 2023 general elections.

In a statement issued on Sunday, a prominent pan-Igbo socio-political pressure group, the South East Revival Group (SERG), urged the Governor to consult widely before agreeing to work with the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

Last week, some Governors elected under the platform of the APC  from the South-West were in Rivers State for a meeting with Mr Wike. This came after it was earlier rumoured that he had a secret meeting with the presidential candidate of the ruling party, Mr Bola Tinubu, in France, though this was denied.

Mr Wike lost his bid to clinch the ticket of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to former Vice President Atiku Abubakar. He blamed the betrayal of his colleagues in the Southern part of Nigeria for his loss.

SERG, which feels the Rivers Governor must be aggrieved over the outcome of the presidential primary of the PDP, said any hasty action that is taken in this “most slippery political period” could be disastrous to a politician.

In the statement signed by its president and National Coordinator, Mr Willy Ezugwu, the organisation counselled Governor Wike to be careful and patient in taking any political decisions in order not to lose the goodwill he has been able to earn from the masses over the years as a performer.

“As audacious supporters of Governor Nyesom Ezenwo Wike, who is one of those we consider to be outstanding in the build-up to the recently concluded presidential primary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), we sincerely counsel the Rivers State Governor to be very cautious in taking political decisions at this time.

“Whether the Governor is aggrieved or not, even though we know that he was betrayed during the presidential primary of his party, the political terrain in Nigeria is too slippery for hasty decisions by any wise politician in the country.

“For keen observers of political trends in Nigeria today, it is clear that the younger generation has largely taken over control of the country’s politics ahead of the 2023 presidential election just as they did in 2015.

“If the older generation of politicians is not careful, they will completely lose relevance in the coming months as campaigns begin.

“It will be suicidal for any politician, who is loved by Nigerians, like Governor Wike to swim against the prevailing national political tides.

“Obviously, those who redirected the politics of the country in 2015, have also taken a position in the current political era.

“Nigerians had yearned for a new breed of leaders (those who belong to the younger generation of politicians) to emerge as presidential candidates across key political parties in Nigeria, but they got disappointed when politicians that ought to have retired from active politics were given presidential tickets to the chagrin of the younger people across the country.

“Apart from the fact that the older generation of politicians who won presidential primaries are largely seen by the youths as corrupt and desperate, Nigerians have been in pains in the last seven years and are not keen on repeating the mistake of 2015.

“For this reason, a critical mass of disenchanted citizens, who have been at the receiving end of misused Nigeria’s commonwealth since 1999, which obviously worsened in the last seven years, has now produced a candidate of their choice.

“In the light of this, only wise politicians will look before they leap ahead of the 2023 presidential election.

“We, therefore, urge Governor Nyesom Ezenwo Wike not to miscalculate or stand in the way of the Nigerian youths, being one of our few leaders who have so far distinguished themselves in the last seven years of misery and pains among the masses,” the group counselled.