BY: News Peddlers
Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu the presidential candidate of the
ruling All Progressives Congress APC, has debunked accusations against his team
of hiring street urchins and dressing them as Christian clerics during
Wednesday’s unveiling of his running mate, Senator Kashim Shettima in Abuja.
In a statement through his campaign organization, Tinubu said
the event was open to all, including clergymen.
Accusing the opposition of cashing in on the development to stir
unnecessary attacks on APC, Director, Media and Communication of the Tinubu
Campaign Organization TCO, Bayo Onanuga also described as “unwarranted
distractions” the viral pictures and videos of some clergymen and women at the
unveiling, PUNCH reports.
Onanuga, said “the event was an open affair, which allowed
members of the public to attend, including the clergymen and some others now
being derided by hirelings of the opposition”.
Part of the statement reads;
“We want to say that those clergymen were not fake, not
mechanics or yam sellers as the purveyors of hatred have made Nigerians to
believe in the social media. They are not big names in Christendom yet, they
are gradually building up their missions.
“They are church leaders who genuinely believe that Nigerians
must eschew politics of hatred and religious bigotry and rather embrace
politics of peace and nation building.
“We therefore deplore the hysterical twisting of the presence of
these men and women in cassocks and the false accusation against our
candidates, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Senator Shettima.
“The orchestrated social media sensation over the presence of
the men is needless and all calculated to detract from the huge success
recorded at the momentous event on Wednesday.
“We believe Nigerians are too wise and discerning to see through
this shenanigan. Asiwaju Tinubu and his running mate and our great party are
working very hard to provide purposeful leadership and good progressive
governance that will improve the quality of life of Nigerians.
“We are well aware that the opposition parties and the sponsors
of the social media charade are jittery and threatened by the intimidating
political credentials of our candidates. The only way they hope to shift
attention of public scrutiny away from their uninspiring candidates and
credentials is to create social media distraction.
“Our campaign is determined on focusing on core governance
issues that affect all Nigerians with a view to confronting them and make the
desired improvements in the standard of living of our people.”
SOURCE: PUNCH