Atiku, who is the Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) recently chose Governor Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta State as his running mate for the 2023 presidential election. 

Recall that Wike came second in the PDP primary election and was touted to be Atiku’s Vice Presidential candidate after his loss at the election in May. 

Prior to the announcement of Okowa as Atiku's choice, the National Working Committee of the PDP had considered and endorsed Wike for the Vice Presidential candidate position, but Atiku preferred Okowa.

Following his emergence as Atiku’s running mate, Okowa in a statement said Wike would not be disappointed about Atiku’s choice because according to him, the Rivers State Governor “is a good democrat who loves the party”.

But Aliyu in an interview with Channels TV said Atiku rejected Wike as his running mate because he talks too much. 

The former governor explained that Wike had insulted a lot of people and the former Vice President wished to share his presidential ticket with someone who complement his person. 

He said, “You do not go around choosing people that would not complement you. As a governor, you choose people that will complement your office; people that are ready to take over from your office; people that people will be comfortable with because it is a ticket. The presence of one or the other could affect the whole ticket. 

"Unfortunately, I don’t know whether it is temperament or it’s another thing. Sometimes, when you speak too much, when you insult yourself, or you insult your way to power, it does not normally happen…I can count many people who have been insulted, either some people saying he is saying his mind, no, there are certain times you don’t say your mind". 

Meanwhile, Wike has urged members of the public to ignore a viral video suggesting that he has a plan to leave the Peoples Democratic Party.