Governor Nyesom Wike was technically rigged out of the presidential primaries of the Peoples Democratic party, a former Chairman of the Rivers All Progressives Congress, APC, Igo Aguma has said.
Reports that he made the claim during an interview in Port Harcourt on Thursday.
Aguma, who is now a member of the PDP, claimed that the National Working Committee of the party betrayed Governor Wike by allowing a second chance for Aminu Tambuwal to announce his withdrawal from the contest, having been giving his entitled five minutes earlier.
He also regretted that some South-South States sold out during the election.
He said, “We were poised to win. We were technically rigged out. We saw a proper conspiracy. When they had said everybody was given 5 minutes to talk and we now saw a long interlude, the next thing we heard is there is a special announcement to be made and his Excellency, Governor Tambuwal walked out and made an announcement, stepping down for Atiku, making a speech longer than 5 minutes, that’s the rigging. It was choreographed.
“Technically, the stepping down and ability to announce it has a sweeping effect. If he was to go there and communicate that he was stepping down, it won’t go round. And then the stepping down, the way it was announced and the speech that preceded it was as though there was a directive from somewhere.
“One thing that has come out from there is that our experience has become deep and wide. We have come to understand how divided this country actually is. We have come to understand that we in the South-South do have a long way to go.
“If we use to think that the South-East has an issue, we the South-South have a serious issue”.