Senator Magnus Ngei Abe has announced his return to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Abe, who represented the Rivers South-East Senatorial District in the 9th National Assembly and was the governorship candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) in the 2023 elections, also announced his reconciliation with his close working pal, Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike.
The ex-senator’s media aide, Parry Benson, in a statement circulated yesterday, said the former Secretary of the Rivers State Government, SSG, remains a member of the APC in Rivers State, as that was his home.
The statement quoted Abe as saying in a post on his Facebook account entitled ‘I Have Made Peace With The Minister of FCT and Former Governor of Rivers State’, that his decision for true reconciliation would enable the APC in Rivers State to benefit from the process of peaceful reunification and reintegration.
“I have made peace with the Honourable Minister of the FCT and former Governor of Rivers State.
I accompanied him to Chief Tony Okocha’s Thanksgiving to show my commitment to ending the rifts in our party,” he said.
Abe added, “I want to publicly thank the minister; he could have behaved like other politicians, made peace with me, and still encouraged me, Tony, and others to continue fighting (you bring Magnus in the morning through one door, then bring Tony in the evening through the other door).
‘’But his style is direct, truthful, and sincere, and it will create a united team.
“The disagreements within are over and gone for good because the oxygen for conflict has been extinguished.
“It may take a little while, but the end result is that all those with us who sincerely wish us well will go with us and tow the path of unity because we all know that it is the right way to go,” the statement read in part.
The former senator thanked Chief Tony Okocha for the warm reception accorded him, reiterating, “My home is in the APC; therefore, let’s come together as everyone will benefit from us working together.”
He emphasised the need to face the economy and support President Bola Tinubu’s government to succeed for the benefit of all Nigerians. Abe, Okocha, and Wike, a former governor of Rivers State, have been longtime political friends dating back to their days in the Rotimi Amaechi administration.
But political interests in the 2023 general elections brought them to loggerheads and made them seek the fulfilment of their ambitions under different political platforms.
While Abe later joined and ran for the governorship on the platform of Social Democratic Party (SDP), Okocha remained in the APC, leading the campaign for the Presidency of Bola Tinubu, while Wike stayed with the PDP, giving a shot at the Presidency.
But he and Wike attending Chief Okocha’s Thanksgiving last Sunday pointed to a possible reconciliation, which Abe’s announcement just confirmed.
A prominent member of the New Nigerian People’s Party (NNPP), Olufemi Oguntoyinbo, has suggested that President Bola Tinubu consider approving a minimum wage of N200,000 for workers.
Oguntoyinbo noted that the current minimum wage cannot sustain the workers.
The NNPP chieftain said this in a statement made available to yesterday.
Felicitating workers on the occasion of this year’s Workers’ Day, Oguntoyinbo also called on the state governors across the country to make workers’ welfare their priority.
