The Governor of Bayelsa State, Douye Diri, has insisted that only the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) will rescue Nigeria from the “mess and economic woes” the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) has thrown the country into in the last six years.

Diri made the assertion while playing host to his counterpart from Rivers State, Nyesom Wike, who was in Yenagoa, the state capital, on a visit on Monday.

While speaking at the reception organized in honour of Wike, Diri insisted that “only the PDP can rescue Nigeria from its present state of insecurity and economic woes.”

In a statement issued by his Chief Press Secretary (CPS), Daniel Alabrah, Diri said:

“The presidency is one sacred office and we must do everything to protect it and ensure that our party clinches victory at the 2023 general polls.

The number one thing for our party is our unity. Second is who becomes president. We have a capable national chairman that can steer us back to power come 2023.”

Diri also had complimentary words for Wike, describing the Rivers governor as a “model of quality leadership and purposeful governance”, stressing that the Niger Delta region needed such leaders to unite and tackle their common challenges.

In his response, Wike said he was confident the PDP would dislodge the APC and produce the next president of Nigeria in 2023.

Today, I came to let everybody know that Governor Diri is one of the governors I can tell you have showed commitment even though he is new and he believes in the development of his state. I am not someone that will come and say what is not correct.

“I have also come to tell him that everybody must work together to make the PDP united because without party, there cannot be presidential candidate. Let us all unite.

“Nigerians are waiting for PDP and we cannot afford to miss this opportunity. As governors, we must work together.

“Anybody can be presidential candidate but if we are not united, it cannot be possible.”