A former president, Olusegun Obasanjo; the Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate, Peter Obi, and the Rivers State governor, Nyesom Wike, have reportedly met in London on Thursday.
While details of the meeting have not been made public, there are indications that it is about next year’s general elections.
Others who attended the meeting were Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue State; Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo; Governor Okezie Ikpeazu of Abia State and a former Cross River governor, Donald Duke.
Thursday’s meeting followed a similar one Wike held with the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential candidate, Bola Tinubu, in France on Monday.
Multiple reports showed that the Oyo State governor, Seyi Makinde; Benue State governor, Samuel Ortom, and Ikpeazu Okezie of Abia State attended the meeting.
They, Wike’s camp, reportedly left the country at the weekend and there are indications that it was about the 2023 elections.
“We can confirm to you authoritatively that Wike and his team met with Tinubu in London to discuss a strategic alliance ahead of the 2023 presidential election,” the Director-General of the Asiwaju Project Beyond, a political support group for Tinubu, Realwan Okpanachi said.
“Both leaders appreciate the need to work together to ensure that Tinubu becomes the president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in 2023.”
Days after the meeting with the APC flagbearer, the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, flew to the UK to mend his frosty relationship with Wike.
Atiku’s camp did not make an official statement about the meeting but a source familiar with the matter who spoke to Channels Television did not rule out the Wike factor.
Since the PDP presidential primary, Wike has had a frosty relationship with the party especially its flagbearer, Atiku.
Attempts to resolve their differences have so far not yielded the desired results.
