A founding member and former Deputy National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Bode George has said that he was left with no option than to dump former governor of Rivers State, Chief Nyesom Wike-led group when he realised that they were drumming support for Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s presidential ambition in 2023.
Chief Bode George, who is also a member of the Board of Trustees of the PDP, said that Wike’s group visited him and made him their leader but when he realised that they had concluded plans to support Tinubu, the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), he had to apply the brakes, knowing fully well that they did not know Tinubu, who had govern his State of Lagos.
In the words of George; “When Wike people came, we had a meeting and they made me their leader. In the end, we had two presidential candidates from the South, and they said they believed that Tinubu was the better person.
“I immediately told them that if they stepped out of this meeting and talked about it, I would counter you. You guys have no idea who Tinubu is. He had ruled my state (Lagos), and we know his modus operandi,” he stressed.
The PDP Chieftain, who stated these on Friday, January, 31, 2025 when he featured on Arise Television programme, said he had earlier supported Wike on the premise of the fact that both the National Chairman and the 2023 presidential candidate of the PDP were both from the North which he noted jettisoned the zoning arrangement of the Party.
He pointedly said that the then national chairman of the party, Dr Iyorchia Ayu and Atiku Abubakar created the problem in the PDP which later snowballed into what is presently taking place.
Bode George said; “The position of the National Chairman went to the North and the Presidential candidate too went to the same North. We said no, it cannot happen like this. That was the basis of the party’s crisis.
The PDP chieftain explained he did not just jump ship to take side with Wike as he made efforts to persuade both Atiku and Ayu to reason with him, but they didn’t listen, a development he said made him got disgusted with Atiku and Ayu particularly against the backdrop of what happened at the PDP national convention.
In the words of Bode George; “I didn’t just jump ship to be with Wike or Atiku. I had meetings with both of them and Ayu. They disrupted the system”.
