From Fatima Bukar, Abuja
The presidency, has on Tuesday repudiated reports indicating that United States and United Kingdom among some world super powers are putting pressure on president Muhammadu Buhari to jettison his second term bid come 2019 general polls.
The presidency made the denial via a press release signed by the special adviser to the President on media and publicity, Mr. Femi Adesina Tuesday.
Adesina was reacting to a story titled “Pressure mounts on Buhari not to seek re-election” in which it was speculated that president Buhari, was under intense pressure to drop his second term bid.
The report alleged that some imperial powers including European Union, United States of America, United Kingdom, and Saudi Arabia, are mounting pressure on Buhari not to seek re-election.
The presidential spokesman said, contrary to the report, Buhari was enjoying an uncommon camaraderie and goodwill among the international community by his sterling record of performance.
He said the president announced his second term ambition after wide consultations across wide spectrum of the Nigerian society, adding that only those who fear electoral defeat are making such phantom and unsubstantiated insinuations.
Adesina noted with disgust how a national newspaper could publish such a weighty report on frivolous grounds, adding that the claim of the paper that it sourced its report from “feelers” constitutes a serious embarrassment to the Nigerian media community.
The spokesman said: “We thought fake news was the sole preserve of the social media in this season. Alas, a traditional medium has caught the bug. Obviously, the author of the story just got a brainwave, or got procured by anti-democratic elements, and then penned the mischief.
“If there are quarters in which President Buhari is held in very high esteem, and the work he is doing for Nigeria highly lauded, it is in the countries mentioned. Some of them are equally bastions of democracy, and will not interfere in the democratic affairs of a sovereign country. The newspaper should simply tell its story to the marines.
“President Buhari is not a flippant or frivolous individual. He gave deep thought to the prospect, before announcing his bid for a second term in office.
“It is only those who fear that their goose would be cooked, if they meet with him at the polls, that are trying to dissuade him from running by all means, including sponsored newspaper stories.”
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