“It will take a miracle for Labour Party with no structure in the grassroots to win the election.”
Answering questions today, July 22, on Arise TV programme, the Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar said that Obi’s supporters had said through the social media that they have one million votes in Osun State “but how many votes do they have in real life?
“In the northern part of the country, about 90 percent of people don’t have access to social media. Most of the electorates are not on social media.
“I really don’t expect the Labour Party to take much votes from the PDP as people are speculating. They have no structure at all levels, with no governor, and lawmakers.”
Atiku, who in 2019, picked Peter Obi as his running mate and with whom he secured 11.2 million votes, admitted that he misses Obi.
He said that he could have picked Obi as his running mate this time around but that the former Anambra governor did not “consult me” before dumping the PDP to declare for president on the Labour Party platform.
Atiku said that Governor Ifeanyi Okowa who he finally picked as his running mate for the 2023 election and Peter Obi are two different people.
“Not that I don’t miss Peter Obi, but unfortunately Peter didn’t consult me. “We were going on and on then suddenly I heard he has announced being in the Labour Party.
“I think he informed me three days after he declared for Labour Party, So he did not even consult me.
“First of all, this is a guy (Okowa) that is very brilliant (and) very very educated. “He started his political career from his local government, from local government to a commissioner, from a commissioner to a senator and from a Senator to a governor. So, in terms of all the political parameters, he really has got the experience and experience matters quite a lot.
“As I announced in my statement, I am seeking for a vice president who from day one can be a president. So, he is calm, he has acquired quite an experience and he is intellectually brilliant. So, these are some of the reasons why I picked him.”
