Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo has stunned his followers by saying he has no plan of running for president in 2019.
Reuters reported that Osinbajo was asked at the FT Africa Summit in London if he had considered running, he said he had not thought about it, adding: “None of that is on the cards”.
There have been rumours that the vice president may run for the highest elective office in 2019.
A group had launched an unauthorised political campaign for him, but he asked Nigerians to disregard them.
The general election is scheduled for February 2019. Candidates are expected to emerge a few months before the exercise.
It is not clear if President Muhammadu Buhari will seek re-election, but there are indications that he may not owing to health challenges. This has fueled speculations about the candidates the president’s party – the All Progressives Congress (APC) – may field.
Osinbajo was acting president for more than three months while Buhari was in London. At the time, he was praised for his effort in steering the economy in a positive direction.
