The spectacular rise of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers State, according to party leaders, is not the result of former governor Nyesom Wike.
The formation and expansion of the APC in the state required the efforts of a number of devoted members, most of whom lost their lives in the struggle to ensure a strong party structure in the state, according to Darlington Nwauju, the party’s publicity secretary in Rivers State, who spoke on behalf of the party leaders when he appeared on national television.
When the party was subjected to several attacks in the state, according to Nwauju, it was wrong to honor a guy who oversaw affairs.
He asserts that the APC has grown steadily and organically ever since the party was founded in 2015.
He said that the APC officials in the state who felt it important to address the issue in order to clear the air insisted that the party outperformed its support in the 2015 elections when Wike was running for governor on the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) ticket.
He emphasized that the APC grew organically internally over time and that thanks to the work of party technocrats in the state, it finally overtook the advantage that the PDP had held since 2015.
”Our growth patterns have been consistent since the 2015 presidential onslaught against Rivers APC.
”Our growth from 2015 to 2019 was 23.8 percent, closing the huge gap of the 2015 presidential election.
“Then the 2023 presidential election came in with additional 80,881 votes in favour of APC in Rivers State.
“The question is, where is the helping hand of former Gov Wike, can he claim to have helped Rivers APC with only 80,881 votes when our growth showed organic growth since 2019?”
The group further asked those singing Wike’s song that he helped Rivers APC, where the 1,487,075 votes he carried in 2015 in favour of PDP out of the 2,537,590 registered voters in Rivers were.
They also asked where the 472,971 votes Wike got for PDP in the 2019 presidential election out of the 3,215,273 registered voters in Rivers State were.
”Can a non-party man takeover a national ruling party in a state, simply because they claim to have helped the national party in his state with just 80,881 votes when such claims couldn’t be substantiated with empirical data?
“Such is the calamitous quagmire Wike, and his sponsored detractors have caused to their political dynasty.
“There is evidence to prove that Wike did not work for APC, he lost his polling unit and lost his ward.
“When he found that his political career was gone, he decided to pitch his tent with APC, just to have a comfort zone to rob APC in Rivers State.
Nwauju further cleared the air that the difference between APC performance between 2015 and 2019 was 82,000 votes. The same difference between 2019 and 2023 is 80,000 votes.
“None of his so-called PDP members worked for us. Some were secretly for Labour Party and others did for PDP in their respective polling units.
“These efforts are projected to result in the complete takeover of the state by the APC in 2027,” they stated.
