Lere Olayinka, an aide to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), has taken a swipe at former Vice President Atiku Abubakar over his recent comments on why he did not select Nyesom Wike as his running mate for the 2023 presidential election.
Atiku, who ran as the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, recently reiterated that he had no regrets about overlooking Wike, the former governor of Rivers State, in his choice for vice president.
Reacting via Twitter, Olayinka dismissed Atiku’s stance, holding him responsible for the PDP’s failure in the 2023 election. He accused the former vice president of revisiting an issue that contributed to his loss.
“Two years after making the PDP lose an election it could have won, Atiku is still explaining why he didn’t pick Wike as his running mate and claiming he has no regrets,” Olayinka wrote.
He further stated that Wike equally had no regrets about working against Atiku’s candidacy and warned that the PDP leader would continue to experience political defeats.
“Someone should inform our serial presidential contender that Wike has no regrets for ensuring his failure in the election and will keep making sure he fails again and again,” Olayinka added.
The longstanding rift between Atiku and Wike remains a significant issue within the PDP. Wike, who led the influential G5 group of governors opposed to Atiku’s candidacy, played a key role in dividing the party’s support.
Many analysts believe this division was a major factor in PDP’s loss to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in 2023, which saw President Bola Tinubu emerge victorious.