For the first time after the presidential primaries and selection of running mate which resulted in a crisis in the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, the presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar; and Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State, met, yesterday, to hammer out solutions to the logjam.

Atiku and Wike’s meeting notwithstanding, a PDP leader said the Rivers State governor may work against Atiku if the issues were not properly handled.

The source said: “Wike will not leave the PDP but he will act as a spoiler. Very soon, those who Atiku does not favour, whether in the choice of the campaign council or he misfires, are those Wike will latch on and use against the PDP candidate. He will be an opposition within the opposition.

Once he launches an attack against Atiku, he will just declare for Peter Obi.

“He is secretly supporting Peter Obi. It will be the same thing Rauf Aregbesola did to them in Osun State. Though Aregbesola did not decamp, he only instructed his supporters to back Ademola Adeleke. It is the same card Wike may play during the campaigns.”

Indeed, a chieftain of the party in Port Harcourt, said: “The onus is on Atiku and Ayu to lead their charge on being open to bringing something to the table, except they want to confirm that they induced Reuben Abati to send the message that a man who kept PDP afloat when all others jumped ship and when the party was sinking does not deserve some respect and recognition in the party’s power sharing equation.

“So, it is not about Wike’s people patronising Atiku and Ayu. Demands and terms have been speculated in the public space. It is not for Wike or his associates to advertise or debate them in the media. When mutual understanding is reached, people will know because Wike is an open person who despises backyard talks.”

However, another top party source said: “Atiku and Wike know what is at hand. They know that the 2023 presidential election is make-or-mar for the PDP and there is a need for them to resolve their differences so that we face the election with a united front.”(Vanguard: Text, excluding headline)

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