Throw ‘Jonah’ off your ship, if you don’t want it to sink, Wike subtly warns Atiku

Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State is not likely to back down on his agitation for the removal of the National Chairman of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) Iyorcha Ayu, as he continues to use it as a condition for supporting the party’s Presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar.

In a recent outburst, he compared the PDP crisis to the biblical story of Jonah, whose presence in a ship caused turbulence on the ocean. The ocean only calmed after he was was thrown off the ship.

Although, he did not mention names, he used the biblical allusion to reiterate his agitation for the removal of Ayu, whom he has accused of corruption and poor handling of party affairs.

Wike spoke at the birthday ceremony of Abia State Governor, Okezie Ikpeazu.

He said, “When we went to London. He (Ikpeazu) told the person who called us to a meeting. This thing happening in PDP is like a bad ship carrying Jonah. When the ship was sinking, they went to Jonah. Jonah said, it’s not about me, it’s the ship. They took Jonah out of the ship, Jonah did not die, the ship stabilized. So why not throw this Jonah out, so that the ship can stabilize, and still that person will survive. That is the issue in PDP.”

Wike also alleged that some unnamed persons, presumably in Atiku’s camp stopped Abia from getting a grant from the Central Bank of Nigeria, even though the state was entitled to it.

He said it was a prize Ikpeazu had to pay for supporting him at the PDP Presidential primary election.

“I will tell Nigerians why some people think we are not Nigerians. Why some people think we are slaves. I cannot be a slave to anybody. You people will see; it will clear your eyes. You will know what we’re telling you.

“Anybody that fight Abia State, you are not fighting Okezie, you’re fighting the people of Abia.

“I will tell you how money that was supposed to come to Abia State for our friend to develop Abia State was stopped recently by those who think they own this country.

“Because Ikpeazu supported me, they went and stopped Abia State from the money it was supposed to get to develop Ariara market.

“That day you will cry when I tell all of you. Abia and Benue State. They denied them their money, that every state had gotten from the Central Bank. I told them Ikpeazu is a quiet man; a born-again Christian. I am not a born again Christian. I told Ikpeazu, when they slap you, turn the other cheek. Me, if you slap me, I’ll blow your head off.

“You can see how people are wicked. People that are not in the office yet, they are stopping state money. Even as we have criticized Buhari, Buhari has never stopped our money any day”, he said. (Ripples Nigeria)