Lere Olayinka, the Senior Special Assistant on Public Communications and New Media to Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister Nyesom Wike, has fiercely criticized House of Representatives member Ugochinyere Ikeagwuonu for his comments about the G5 governors, accusing them of attempting to destroy the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Olayinka, in a statement issued on Saturday, referred to Ugochinyere as a “political hushpuppi,” claiming he was a product of the PDP’s dysfunction.
Olayinka was responding to Ugochinyere’s remarks on Channels TV’s Politics Today on Friday, in which the legislator alleged that Wike and other G5 governors, including Seyi Makinde of Oyo State and former governors Samuel Ortom, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, and Okezie Ikpeazu, were bent on sabotaging the PDP.
In his rebuttal, Olayinka slammed Ugochinyere, suggesting that his sudden rise within the party was an example of the irregularities in PDP leadership.
“This is what happens when individuals who joined the PDP just yesterday are handed tickets the next day. Someone who joined the party in 2022 now lectures us on loyalty to the party? If the PDP had operated properly, would someone like Ugochinyere, who was in another party, have gotten the party’s ticket?”
Olayinka also took issue with Ugochinyere’s continued affiliation with the Action Peoples Party (APP) in Rivers State, despite being a PDP member, accusing him of political opportunism.
He suggested that Ugochinyere’s accusations against Wike were driven by a need to please his benefactors in Rivers State, implying that the legislator was serving personal interests over public duty.
Mocking Ugochinyere for his apparent need for a title, Olayinka also accused him of impersonating a position in the National Assembly.
“When he entered the House of Representatives, he gave himself the self-proclaimed title of ‘Spokesperson of Opposition Lawmakers Coalition in the 10th National Assembly. But is the Coalition of United Political Parties (CUPP) even a registered political party with members in the House? What he did is a clear violation of National Assembly rules.”
Olayinka suggested that Ugochinyere had been exploiting his position, particularly in Rivers State, by using his supposed affiliation with APP and the non-existent opposition lawmakers group for financial gain.
He concluded by accusing Ugochinyere of continuing his “political hustle” at the expense of his constituents and the integrity of the PDP.
