The APC Lagos candidate denied supporting Hamzat, and threatened legal action

A Lagos State gubernatorial aspirant, Samuel Ajose, has denied circulating claims that he is backing Obafemi Hamzat, the current deputy governor of Lagos State, as the gubernatorial candidate of his party, the All Progressives Congress.

Ajose, in a post on his X account on Thursday, stated that the press release circulating was fake and invalid.

He said the publication, which also signaled his support for the decision of the state Government Advisory Council, did not come from him or his campaign organization.

“My attention has been drawn to the circulation of fake and unauthorized press releases in the Nigerian media, purporting to convey my support for Dr. Hamzat as our party’s candidate for governor of Lagos State, and my support for the decision of the state GAC, a process in which I had no role,” he said.

The APC leader described the publication as misleading and malicious and called on the public and media organizations to ignore the statement and avoid further dissemination.

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“This publication is fictitious, unauthorized, and malicious. It does not represent my position, the position of my campaign, or the position of anyone authorized to speak on my behalf.

“I urge the good people of Lagos State and my supporters across the country to ignore it completely. I further urge responsible media houses to refrain from exaggerating what is, in legal terms, a defamatory and potentially criminal instrument designed to manipulate public opinion and undermine my standing,” he said.

The APC gubernatorial candidate also issued a warning to those responsible for circulating the document, and demanded its immediate retraction.

“All parties who have published or continue to circulate this material are hereby notified: full retraction and deletion must be carried out within 12 hours. Legal proceedings for reputational and electoral damage will follow without further notice,” he said.