APC primary: Umahi did not step down for Lawan, says aide

David Umahi, governor of Ebonyi state, says he has not withdrawn from the presidential race to support Senate President Ahmad Lawan.

On Saturday, it was reported that Umahi had stepped down for Lawan in the contest to pick the presidential ticket of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Reacting to the development, Francis Nwaze, media aide of the Ebonyi governor, said the report is innacurate.

He said Lawan had earlier visited Umahi as part of the last-minute effort to forge a partnership ahead of the primary.

He said there was no discussion on the issue of stepping down during the meeting.

“For the sake of discerning minds, what happened was that Senate President, Ahmed Lawal in a last-ditch effort to ramp up partnership ahead of the APC Presidential Primary, visited Governor Umahi in his Abuja residence on Saturday where they both promised to support whoever amongst the two and other Aspirants that emerge the Flagbearer of the Party in the Primary,” the statement reads.

“The Senate President even took out time to eulogize Engineer Umahi for making the Party proud through his purposeful governance in Ebonyi State.

“There was no time during the visit that the issue of stepping down by either Engineer Umahi or the Senate President was discussed or even suggested.

“The teeming supporters of Engineer Umahi across Nigeria and beyond are encouraged to disregard the ill-fated news item which is by all standards fake, and go about their solidarity on the assurance that His Excellency the Governor is still very much in the race to develop Nigeria, God willing, he will emerge in the Sunday Presidential Primary of our great Party, the All Progressives Congress.”

Earlier, northern APC governors had asked President Muhammadu Buhari to look toward the southern presidential hopefuls when considering his successor.