Atiku Abubakar's rally in Port Harcourt has been cancelled, according to the Peoples Democratic Party Presidential Campaign Council.
The PDP PCC Chairman in Rivers State, Senator Lee Maeba, announced that "the presidential campaign planned early this week would no longer hold," citing security concerns.
The expected victory of Atiku Abubakar, according to Senator Maeba, "does not worth the blood of any Rivers man or woman."
As Atiku Abubakar emerged as the PDP's presidential candidate, tensions in the state grew as the governor, Nyesom Wike, disagreed with the party's national leadership.
Wike and four other party governors argued that Iyorchia Ayu, the party's national chairman, must stand down so that a new leader from the South may take his place.
Wike had already authorised the state stadium for the event but later revoked that authorization. According to him (Wike), Atiku was collaborating with an APC subgroup in the state.
After some debate, Wike ultimately decided to once again authorise the stadium as the location of the event, but Atiku's campaign coordinators in the state indicated they would no longer be using it.