Rivers Governor Nyesom Wike has said that the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Tonye Cole and his supporters worked against their presidential candidate Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu but failed in their own elections.
The Governor said while Cole was working for the emergence of the Presidential Candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, he led the campaign for a southern Presidency that delivered bulk votes to Tinubu in Rivers.
Wike insisted that he owed nobody any apology for supporting the emergence of a Southern president.
Addressing Cole, he said: “How can people say that they rigged you? You said you made your presidential candidate to win. Your presidential candidate won but you don’t get one senate (seat). What kind of winning is that?
“They supported PDP candidate and they lost woefully. They didn’t get 25 per cent. We supported a southern president for equity, fairness and justice and we took the senate seats. We took 11 House of Reps out of 13. We prove to them we are responsible and we are in charge of the state”.
Wike wondered why Cole and not his lawyers or agents were the ones going to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) office to collect certified true copies (CTC) of electoral materials.
The governor spoke during the inauguration of Government Secondary School in Kpor Community of Gokana Local Government Area on Tuesday.
Wike said the show of desperation by Cole suggested a sinister motive that should not be waved away but queried.
Open Letter
The Governor dismissed as baseless the allegations raised by Cole against the PDP that they attacked him and prevented him from accessing INEC office in Port Harcourt.
Wike explained that because of the popularity of PDP in Rivers following its excellent performance, the party won all three senatorial seats, 11 House of Representatives seats and all 32 State House of Assembly seats.
Wike described as laughable the decision of the governorship candidates of Accord party, Chief Dumo Lulu-Briggs and the Labour Party, Beatrice Itubo, to approach the election tribunal to contest the results.
He said such candidates were not opponents in the election but were only desirous to be on the ballot.