The Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume, has denied claims that he is vying for the position of National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), describing such reports as false and distracting.
Akume’s position was revealed in a statement by the Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to the SGF, Yomi Odunuga, on Thursday, in reaction to a publication by a national news platform which named Akume among top politicians allegedly jostling for the APC chairmanship.
The statement partly reads, “The attention of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume, has been drawn to a publication in the Leadership Newspaper indicating that the SGF is one of the top politicians jostling for the position of the Chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress.
“To the best of our knowledge, this statement is nothing but a fabrication meant to distract the SGF from the key responsibilities that have been placed on him by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu (GCFR).
“For the record, Senator Akume is not jostling with anyone for the post of either the APC National Chairman or any other post in the party.
“His main focus, he insists, is to ensure that he does not in any way betray the intrinsic trust that President Tinubu reposes in him in ensuring that the Renewed Hope Agenda of the ruling party and the government is achieved within the targeted time frame.
“While Senator Akume believes that there are qualified candidates in the North-Central to vie for the National Chairmanship position should the party decide to zone the position to the North-Central geopolitical zone, he is of the opinion that what is paramount to him is to help in fast-tracking national development in line with the government’s Renewed Hope Agenda instead of getting entangled in the politics of who becomes the National Chairman of the party.”
In further reaction to the publication, Akume explained without an iota of doubt that he was not ready to relinquish his role as SGF.
“I am not in a hurry to abdicate my responsibility and the task that the President of the Federal Republic has placed before me. I am a firm believer in the principle that whatever God plans for you will surely come to pass. So I can’t be in a race that I am not interested in.
“Everything that I have been in life has been given to me by the Almighty God through the instrumentality of people, including President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. To say that I am one of the prominent politicians gunning for the position of the APC Chairman is completely false because I am in the process of ensuring that the Renewed Hope Agenda of the President and the government is realised so that Nigerians can enjoy the true dividends of democracy that they crave.
“We are working day and night to deliver on these promises under the supervision of the president, and we are totally committed to this,” Akume said.
Akume also called on the media to uphold ethical journalism in reporting sensitive matters that could stir unnecessary political tension.
“The Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation would appreciate, in the principle of fairness, that professionalism and the ethics of journalism should be taken seriously in reportage, especially in writing stories that are as sensitive as this, which are capable of heating the polity.
“The Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation is open to be contacted for verification of facts, and it will be appreciated if media practitioners will avail themselves of this opportunity at every given time,” the statement concluded.
