Rivers State governor, Nyesom Wike, has asked the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to apologise to Nigerians following a divisive and controversial remarks made by its presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar.
Atiku had said: “I know the whole of this country. I have built bridges across this country. I think what the average northerner needs is somebody who is from the north, who also understands the other parts of Nigeria, and who has been able to build bridges across the rest of the country.
“This is what the northerner needs. He (the northerner) doesn’t need a Yoruba candidate or an Igbo candidate. This is what the northerner needs. I stand before you as a pan-Nigerian of northern origin”.
Speaking in Port Harcourt on Monday shortly after arriving from Spain, Wike said while he doubted the possibility of Atiku making such a statement at a critical time of the country’s history, such disposition of the presidential candidate would justify his fight for equity, justice and fairness in the PDP.
He insisted that the party must urgently address the issue and appeal to Nigerians, failing which people would begin to see the party as one that lacks justice and equity.