The G5 group includes former Governors Nyesom Wike (Rivers), Samuel Ortom (Benue), Okezie Ikpeazu (Abia), and Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi (Enugu) as well as Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo state.
At the Aso Villa in Abuja, President Bola Tinubu met with members of the G5, or the Integrity Group.
Although details of the meeting were sketchy at the time of filing this report, it was gathered that the president and the former governors discussed a working relationship.
“The G-5 PDP Governors first met in Wike’s residence for a few hours before heading to the Villa to meet with the president,” said a source close to the meeting who requested anonymity because he was not authorised to speak on the matter.
“Exact details of what was discussed isn’t available to me at the moment, but from discussions held during the initial meeting at Wike’s residence, it was all about finding accommodation for the former governors in the scheme of things and of course, how they can work together.”
The group, led by Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, caused a major schism within the PDP by demanding that the then-National Chairman, Iyorchia Ayu, step down in order for a southern replacement to support the party’s flag bearer in the February 25 election.
In the recently concluded elections, both Atiku and Ayu called the then-governors’ bluff and refused to cave in to their demands.
Makinde and Wike are said to have helped Tinubu win the election, while Ortom supported the Labour Party’s presidential candidate, Peter Obi.