Fence-mending talks: Atiku meets Wike in London

Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar on Thursday hosted Governor Nyesom Wike in London, United Kingdom as part of fresh effort to settle the crisis in the party.

Samuel Ortom, governor of Benue, Seyi Makinde of Oyo, and Okezie Ikpeazu of Abia are some of Wike’s allies that attended the meeting.

Ahmadu Fintiri, governor of Adamawa, who heads Abubakar’s delegation for peace talks with Wike’s team, was also in the meeting.

The meeting comes hours after former President Olusegun Obasanjo, Peter Obi, presidential candidate of Labour Party (LP), and Wike met in the European country.

It also comes days after Wike and his associates met with Bola Tinubu, presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), in France.

Previous attempts by Abubakar to reconcile with Wike have proved abortive.

The opposition party has been embroiled in crisis since the conclusion of its presidential primary election in May.

Wike had contested the presidential ticket, but he lost to the former vice-president.

READ ALSO: Time for Atiku to call Wike’s bluff

The cracks widened after Atiku Abubakar named Ifeanyi Okowa, governor of Delta, as his running mate for the 2023 presidential election.

Following the announcement, some party stakeholders expressed concerns that Atiku overlooked Wike — who was said to have been recommended by a panel set up at Atiku’s instance.

The division in the party worsened after Atiku granted an interview to Arise TV, during which he gave his rationale for overlooking Wike.

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Days after the interview, Wike fired back, accusing the party’s presidential candidate of telling “many lies”.

Atiku has been making efforts to reconcile with Wike but there has been little progress thus far. Last week, a three-member delegation he constituted met with Wike’s team in Rivers.

The Rivers governor is reportedly demanding the resignation of Iyorchia Ayu, PDP national chairman, as a precondition for peace talks.