As the organisers get set for the epoch presidential debate today, Chairman, Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption, Prof Itse Sagay, has given reasons why President Muhammadu Buhari, the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate will not participate in the debate.

In an exclusive interview with Saturday Sun, the erudite Law Professor, said, the president is far ahead of all other candidates, he described as ‘political dwarfs’, and as such, appearing with them in a debate is just to give relevance to people who have no hope.

Sagay’s position on the debate was confirmed from multiple sources in the presidency, who told Saturday Sun that President Buhari won’t participate in today’s debate because he had attended one on Wednesday along with his deputy, Vice President Yemi Osibajo, tagged ‘The Candidates’ anchored by Kadaria Ahmed and wouldn’t want to give his opponents the platform to embarrass him.

When asked if President Buhari’s absence at the debate won’t be interpreted that he doesn’t know what to say, Sagay said “Obviously, he knows what to say. He is the head of government, even if he is not initiating everything that the government is doing, he is approving them; he is reading, he is signing.

“He knows what to say. It is not in his interest to go and debate with those people.

“He has nothing to gain by debate. If he goes to debate, he is just going to help people who have no hope, and I call them, Buhari and the political dwarfs; he is only going to give relevance to the political dwarfs; he is already far ahead of all of them. He doesn’t want to go there and make them taller than they are; so, let them remain like that – political dwarfs. In four weeks time, we will know them.

•Excerpted from a Saturday Sun report