Combat-ready governor of Rivers State, Mr. Nyesom Wike, has alleged that one of the children of the embattled chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Dr. Iyorchia Ayu is the contractor handling the renovation of the Peoples Democratic Institute (PDI) and the party’s national secretariat, Wadata House, in Abuja.
Wike made the allegation yesterday just as he faulted the party’s board of trustees (BoT) for recommending that Ayu should resign after the 2023 elections.
Recall that Wike, who heads the G-5 governors of the party have vehemently opposed Ayu’s chairmanship after Mr. Atiku Abubakar emerged the presidential standard bearer of the PDP.
They base their call for Ayu’s exit on the premise that the national chairman and the presidential candidate of the party cannot be from the same region.
Both Ayu and Atiku are from the north.
However, some members of the party rejected the call for Ayu to resign, saying he can only resign after the presidential election in February — if Abubakar wins.
Last Friday, October 14, the PDP BoT recommended in its report that Ayu should assure the party that he would resign after the 2023 general election.
In his reaction, Wike said he was taken aback that the BoT would make such a ridiculous recommendation.
Speaking at the Port Harcourt International Airport, Omagwa when he returned from the G-5 meeting in Spain, Wike said: “To say he (Ayu) should make another commitment that he will resign after the elections, for me, BoT resolution is ridiculous,” he said.
On Ayu’ denial that he never received N100 billion from a presidential hopeful, Wike said: “Luckily for me, he (Ayu) has now mentioned that he went to the presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, the Waziri of Adamawa, where they discussed the issue of borrowing.
“Now, the question is, when you talk about borrowing, who approves borrowing? You must go to the national working committee (NWC) to say you want to borrow money. I challenge him to bring the records where NWC approved that the party should go and borrow N1 billion. What is the collateral?
“Be sincere. How can you talk of a N1 billion loan without the NWC mooting the idea, without the governors’ knowledge? Then you talk about the N100 million he said he told the BoT.
“If any governor gives you N100 million in order to rebuild one of the structures of the party, the democratic institute, let him show the minutes of the NWC where he said a governor has contributed N100 million. Let him show the account to reflect this N100 million.
“Let him also say that the N100 million was in naira or in dollars. He said he gave it to the treasurer. I thought he would have told the world that NWC was aware.
“In fact, the normal thing is that once any governor or any party person has donated money to the party, you will go and tell NWC that so and so person has donated money. Let him (Ayu) show us the account where this money was paid into.
“Coming out to do a general denial is not denial. You must deny specifically the allegations that were made.
“As a party, we believe that Nigerians must trust us. We must show leadership and part of that leadership is integrity. You don’t just come and deceive Nigerians that you did not collect N1 billion.”
The governor asked Ayu to mention the names of those he contacted to handle the rehabilitation of the Peoples Democratic Institute (PDI) the national secretariat, Wadata Plaza, Wuse Zone in Abuja.
“Ask him about the contracts that are going on in this democratic institute and that of Wadata. Who is doing that contract? Is it not one of his sons?”
