Nigeria, March 31 -- Kwara State Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq has denied a report that he has identified a preferred successor and communicated the choice to President Bola Tinubu, calling the claim false and urging party members to disregard it.

In a statement issued by his media adviser, Bashir Adigun, the governor described the report as "false, malicious and designed to blackmail."

"It is untrue to suggest that the governor has submitted the name of any aspirant," the statement said.

The denial follows a report that AbdulRazaq had privately indicated support for Yakubu Salihu-Danladi, speaker of the Kwara State House of Assembly, as political maneuvering begins ahead of the All Progressives Congress primary.

The report, which c...