, as his running mate in the 2023 presidential election.){kind=link}
Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has addressed the decision to overlook Nyesom Wike, now Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), as his running mate in the 2023 presidential election.
His choice was a key moment in the internal conflict that later split the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
At the time, Wike, then Rivers State governor, led a faction of five PDP governors, known as the G5, in opposition to Atiku’s candidacy.
They refused to back him, arguing that the party’s leadership structure was unfair.
During the election, Wike openly opposed Atiku and claimed to have secured Rivers State for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. Many political analysts believe this contributed to Atiku’s loss.
However, Atiku has stated that he has no regrets about his decision.
“No, not at all,” he said.
He explained that his running mate selection followed a consultative process involving PDP leaders. Reflecting on 2019, when he picked Peter Obi as his running mate, he recalled being criticized for not consulting widely enough.
“In 2019, after securing the ticket in Port Harcourt, I went to Abeokuta to meet my boss, President Obasanjo, and informed him. He asked where my running mate would come from, and I mentioned either the South-East or South-West. He advised against the South-West since he had governed from there for eight years and suggested the South-East instead. I agreed.”
Atiku recalled that Obasanjo initially proposed Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, now Director General of the World Trade Organization (WTO), but Atiku pointed out that she was not a PDP member. Obasanjo then suggested Charles Soludo, but Atiku gave the same reason.
“Then he said, ‘What about Peter Obi?’ I confirmed Obi was a party member, and that settled it. I returned here, held a meeting with party leaders, including Uche Secondus, Wike, and Tambuwal, and presented Obasanjo’s suggestion. They all agreed.”
Despite this, Atiku said some party members later accused him of not consulting widely enough.
“So in 2023, I let the party handle it. I asked them to form a committee and recommend three candidates for me to choose from.”
The committee proposed three names: then-Delta State Governor Ifeanyi Okowa as the first choice, Wike as the second, and then-Akwa Ibom State Governor Udom Emmanuel as the third.
“So I picked the first name on the list,” Atiku explained, emphasizing that Wike was simply not the top choice.