Senate President Ahmad Lawan has said he is aspiring for the presidency of the country as a Nigerian and not northerner.
According to the statement by Ola Awoniyi for the Ahmad Ibrahim Lawan Campaign Organisation, Lawan stated this while addressing All Progressives Congress (APC) delegates in Katsina State.
Lawan said he was contesting as a Nigerian presidential aspirant who is qualified to lead the country.
He said, “I am not running as a northern aspirant because the impression created is that I’m a northern aspirant or that northerners are saying they are not going to allow power to the South.
“I’m not running as a northern candidate. I’m running as a Nigerian Presidential aspirant and therefore I come with all my qualifications for that office and people should judge me on the basis of what I have to offer.
“We have been around for some time. Thank God, from 2019, we have been working with the President of our Party, President Muhammadu Buhari, very closely. I know and I understand most of the national issues that we deal with.
“I’m a participant in this government and I use that as one advantage that I have. Even though I’m a parliamentarian, I have some experience in governance. Real experience. Therefore, we are going round to tell Nigerians that we are available.
“The fact that we came out last speaks volumes, because I didn’t just wake up one morning and say I want to be President. It took a lot of time for those who believe in me to talk to me to also throw my hat in the ring. And after some time, I accepted.
“And that is to say that some people are not satisfied with those they are seeing and they think that we can do better. I have a great deal of respect for those who are running. The other aspirants.
“And I believe that I have my advantages and I’m going to use my advantages by the Grace of God to not only emerge as the candidate of our party but also win the general election.
“And I’m not running like someone from the North-East, I’m running as a Nigerian because I believe that I understand the issues of development in Nigeria today.”
