The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has disclosed that he and other prominent Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) figures resisted significant pressure to install former Senate President David Mark as the opposition party’s National Chairman.
Wike made these revelations during a media engagement on Monday, where he provided insights into internal party politics and his firm stance on leadership appointments.
“Let me tell you something,” Wike stated emphatically, “when we began facing the National Chairmanship question in the North-Central zone, there was considerable pressure to make David Mark the PDP National Chairman. We refused.”
When asked why the former Senate President was rejected despite his pedigree, Wike offered a blunt response: “Why not? What good will he bring to the party?”
He questioned Mark’s impact during his time as Senate President, noting that holding a position is not enough without tangible contributions to national development.
“He has been a Senate President in the party for 8 years. What are the things that happened? What is the improvement?” Wike asked rhetorically.
The former Rivers State governor said he would rather support a fresh face with genuine reformist intentions than career politicians with long tenures but little track record of impact.
“I have told you here, I prefer somebody who has not had any position, who has come to tell me that, ‘Look, I am doing this because I want to help with change, to achieve this and that,’” he explained.
Wike stressed, “I will not listen to anybody who has been in power for years, who has refused to contribute anything to the development of the country, and now you come to tell me this story that, ‘Look, we need to rescue this country.’ You were there, the country was sinking, did you rescue it?” he queried.
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