Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) 2023 presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, has revealed why he did not pick the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike as his running mate in 2023.
After Wike lost the PDP presidential ticket to Atiku in 2023, there were high expectations that the former Vice President would compensate him by naming him as his running mate.
Instead, Atiku opted for former Delta State Governor, Ifeanyi Okowa and his decision led to a face-off between him and Wike.
Speaking in a yet-to-be-aired interview for a television show, Untold Stories, with Adesuwa Giwa-Osagie, Atiku explained why he took the decision.
According to him, he decided to throw the process open after party leaders accused him of not consulting widely before picking former Governor of Anambra State, Peter Obi as his running mate in 2019.
“They said I did not consult with the party enough. So in 2023, I threw the whole thing to the party. I said, ‘Okay, set up a committee and recommend three people for me to pick as a running mate”, he said.
He went on to say the committee submitted three names with Ifeanyi Okowa as the first choice, Wike as the second, and former Akwa Ibom State Governor, Udom Emmanuel as the third.
“So I picked number one,” he said, adding that his decision not to pick Wike was simply because he was the second choice on the list.
He, however, added that he does not regret snubbing the former Rivers State governor.
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