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The Ekiti State Governor Mr. Ayodele Fayose has opened up on why he sponspored the controversial advertorial entitled “Enough of state burials,” warned that almost all the past Presidents from the North-West died in the office, adding: “Will thou allow history to repeat itself? Enough of state burials, Nigerians vote wisely, vote Goodluck Jonathan, Northern Presidency should wait till 2019.”
Fayose’s response was contained in a press statement released yesterday which stated that, “I wish to refer to the late President Umaru Musa Yar; Adua who former President Olusegun Obasanjo claimed was hale and hearty to lead this country and subsequently took ill and died. I must assure all those who have expressed genuine concerns,unlike the APC that is playing cheap politics over the issue -that my intention is not a death wish to General Buhari but a factual postion that APC is covering.
“My consideration for the advertorial in the midst of alleged ill health of the late president is the need for the nation not to forget the crisis we were thrown into in 2010 but saved by the National Assembly which had to invoked the Doctrine of Necessity after protests by the Save Nigeria Group ( SNG) “It is in defence of fairness that I called attention to the potential crisis we may face God forbid that the health of the general becomes a hindrance if he was president and his Vice who is from the South West would have to step into the saddle not too long after Obasanjo eight years in office.
“I wish to draw attention to the lead story in the Sunday Tribune of January 18, 2015,entitled, ” Buhari’s planned visit to US causes furore.” The story revealed that arrangement had been concluded to fly Buhari to US for a medical check up. That Buhari has been stressed from effects of the rigours of presidential campaigns across the country and he is definitely in need of medical attention, adding that age was a factor as rigours of the campaign was getting at him.The health of all of us who have stepped into the leadership space is nothing personal to us anymore as it has implications on the polity.”
Reacting to the advertisement, yesterday, in Abuja, Director of Media and Publicity of PDP Presidential Campaign Organisation, Chief Femi Fani-Kayode, noted that the organisation and the party were not in support of the governor’s position on the issue. Fani-Kayode said: “Governor Ayo Fayose is a distinguished leader of our party; a democratically elected governor and someone we have immense respect and affection for and he released this advert in his own name. That represents his own personal opinion which he is entitled to. What I can tell you on our part is that it does not represent the opinion of the Presidential Campaign Organisation or indeed the President. It is his (Fayose’s) opinion, which he is entitled to and he is somebody that we have immense respect for.
“He is a leading member of the party. I have spoken with him and we respect him but for any body to suggest that this is the position of the Presidential Campaign Organisation or President Goodluck Jonathan, that will be most unfair. If we wanted to say something like that we will say it without any kind of apology but of course, we will never say that because we believe in the sanctity of life. Age is not a function of how long you will live. It is important that we recognise the fact that age is not an indication of how long somebody will live. We believe strongly that we must continue to show immense respect to the person of General Buhari.
“Fayose never said that he was speaking on behalf of President Jonathan but for himself and he said that he issued it in his name. And I have emphasised that, that is his opinion and he is entitled to it. I could only disown if a statement was purportedly made on our behalf and in fairness to him, he never said that. What is important is to emphasise that fact that his position does not represent our position on this. He is entitled to that position, he is a leading member of our party.”
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