A strong member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Tony Ehilebo, has criticised the Governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Wike for speaking ill of the governorship ambition of former federal lawmaker, Senator Dino Melaye.
Ehilebo said Wike has no capacity and right to interfere with the politics of Kogi State and defame the political ambition of Melaye.
He said Wike has no right to say Melaye is unfit to become a Governor.
He said the Rivers State Governor would be called to order if he misbehaves.
He said, “Thinking he can stop Dino is an abnormality; is Wike from Kogi State? What warranted him calling media houses and berating a candidate of his own party? What necessitated that?
“If he has issues or he wants to support another person in Kogi State, he should know how to do that. This belief that he can misbehave and nobody can call him to order is impossible.
“Dino himself should not have given a response. He could have issued a statement but shouldn’t toe the same part with Wike.
“The Kogi issue is internal, if Wike wants to support a candidate, he should empower someone in the state who can speak up for him, not himself. This is an insult to Kogi people”.
As earlier reported by The Informant247, Governor Wike has said that Senator Dino Melaye lacks the capacity to lead a state as a governor.
He made this revelation on Tuesday April 11, 2023 during a media chat in Port Harcourt, the capital of the state.
He explained that Melaye cannot defeat other governorship candidates if he wins the ticket on the platform of the People’s Democratic Party PDP.
He said Melaye will lose the state governorship election which is to take place, November 11 if given the ticket.
“When you give Dino that ticket you know he won’t win in Kogi state,” he said.
“You’re talking about governance of a state, we are not talking about drama.
“Dino does not have what it takes. What is he going to do? Why would Kogi people say they will vote for Dino? Are we joking?
“He does not have what it takes to be a governor at all. It is not about coming to act drama on television.”
As earlier reported by The Informant247, the former federal lawmaker had declared interest to become the next Governor of Kogi State.
Melaye on Sunday March 26 took to his Twitter page to call on his supporters and followers to lend him support ahead of the governorship poll.
He said he was confident that the state will rise again if he becomes the governor of the state.
Melaye wrote: “Let’s do it together. We shall recover Kogi State.”
The screening committee of the party for Kogi State successfully screened Melaye, a former Senator representing Kogi West in the National Assembly, for the guber poll.
Report also has it that some party leaders have pitched their tents with Melaye, for him to become the flagbearer in the primary election.
There are speculations that the presidential candidate of the party, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar was supporting Melaye.
The media adviser to the presidential candidate, Paul Ibe, dismissed the allegation, saying his boss has no preferred candidate in the party primary.
Wike said : “Elections will come like what they are going for now in Kogi state. Of course, you have seen what is going on — how lists have been changed to favour a particular candidate (whose candidacy) as far as I am concerned is dead on arrival,” he said.