Senator Tanko Al-Makura, former governor of Nasarawa State and one of the frontline All Progressives Congress (APC) national chairmanship aspirants, has maintained that President Muhammadu Buhari did not endorse Adamu Abdullahi as consensus candidate for the position.
Adamu, also a former governor of Nasarawa is widely believed to be Buhari’s anointed candidate for the position, with many reports indicating that the president had insisted on him despite attempts by some governors and other stakeholders of the party to make him change his mind.
However, speaking in an interview with Vanguard, Al-Makura noted that the reports about Adamu being Buhari’s anointed candidate are mere speculations.
“The sources of information were not authentic. They were not genuine. And I know what Mr. President stands for. He always stands for what is right and due process. And unless I have an authoritative source of information that is clear, I still have my doubts,” he said.
“I have many avenues through which I can reach Mr. President and people around him. And since the reports of the adoption did not come through those avenues, I consider them as speculations.
“That is why as I speak with you, my campaign is going with a different tempo, to ensure that my campaign is going far and wide to await the next line of action as directed by the party leadership.”
Al-Makura who expressed optimism that the party’s national convention would hold on March 26, despite persisting crisis, noted that newspapers were only coming up with screaming headlines about Buhari’s endorsement without carrying out proper investigation.
“When a newspaper came up with a shouting headline that the President had endorsed so and so, Villa debunked that,” he said.
“So I don’t take things that come either as headlines or whatever, except I do my due diligence to assure myself that yes, what he said is authentic, and until it is, I consider our convention a doable thing. And I consider that we are going to go through it without any problems.”