Wike Is Not Our Member, PDP Tells APC Amid Fresh Dispute

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has asserted that the All Progressives Congress (APC) is in no position to criticize the actions of the Federal Capital Territory Minister, Nyesom Wike. The PDP holds that the APC must accept the political fallout resulting from its own conduct in Rivers State.

The opposition party said Wike is no longer a member of the PDP and accused the APC of knowingly aligning with him for political advantage, only to raise objections now that the relationship has become problematic.

The PDP’s position was made known on Tuesday in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Ini Ememobong, while reacting to the public exchange between Wike and the APC National Secretary, Ajibola Basiru, over political developments in Rivers State.

Ememobong said the APC national secretary might be relying on outdated information about Wike’s political status.

“The National Secretary of the APC may genuinely not know who is or is not a member of the PDP, and may therefore be relying on outdated information suggesting that Wike was a PDP member,” he said.

He said Wike and his supporters were expelled from the PDP, stressing that the APC has neither the moral nor legal standing to distance itself from someone it willingly embraced.

“Wike was expelled from the PDP, along with his supporters, and that is why we sympathise with the problem the APC has brought upon itself by engaging Wike; someone they now lack the moral or legal standing to disown,” he said.

The PDP spokesman argued that the APC could not complain about a situation it voluntarily created.

“The law does not allow you to benefit from a wrong you created, nor can you complain of a voluntary injury. You cannot complain about an act you willingly undertook. So they should manage the situation they have created,” Ememobong said.

He added that what the APC once regarded as an asset had now become a liability.

“What was once seen as an asset has now become a liability, and they must deal with it,” he said.

Ememobong also rejected attempts to drag the PDP into the controversy, noting that the same conduct now being criticised was previously celebrated when it favoured the APC.

“As for his comments, he should not drag the PDP into this. It is the same conduct he is now complaining about. When he was engaging in this conduct in a way that favoured the APC, they were jubilating and laughing. This same National Secretary did not complain even once,” he said.

He maintained that issues of principle should be addressed beyond partisan interests.

“When something is wrong, it is wrong. As a citizen and as the National Publicity Secretary of the PDP, if someone engages in anti-party activity or aligns with another party, I will call that person out. Either leave that party and join us, or remain independent and support us openly,” he stated.

Ememobong insisted that the APC alone benefited from Wike’s political actions and must now deal with the fallout.

“What the APC is experiencing is a voluntary injury they inflicted on themselves, so they must manage him. After all, the benefits of this nuisance accrued to the APC, and they must now manage the fallout,” he said.

Using a metaphor, the PDP spokesman added, “This is what happens when you keep feeding a monster. One day, you become food in the belly of that monster. Some people keep feeding the monster, thinking they will always escape, forgetting that one day the monster may tire of the food being fed to it and ask instead, what would this person taste like? And then, they end up in the belly of the monster.”