PDP Distances Self From Fayose's Death Wish Ad On Buhari

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential campaign organisation has distanced itself from the controversial death-wish advertorial authored by the Ekiti State Governor, Ayo Fayose.

Fayose in the said advertisement, published in two national newspapers, warned Nigerians against voting for the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, predicting that if elected, Buhari too would die in office.

Director of Media and Publicity of the PDP presidential campaign organisation, Femi Fani-Kayode on Tuesday said the views expressed in the publication were personal to Fayose.

According to him, the message in the said advertorial did not in any way reflect the views of the PDP presidential campaign organisation, adding that questions regarding the advertisement should be directed to the Ekiti State Governor.

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, but 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 as the presidential campaign organisation is that does not represent the opinion of the campaign organisation or indeed that of the President.

"It is his 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 anybody 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 recognize 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 for the person of Gen. Buhari in terms of his person and his health, though we believe it is important to always raise questions about facts, you know what these questions are and we will continue to raise them."