A public policy think tank, the Neo Africana Centre, has expressed dismay over the disinformation making the rounds that some presidential candidates in the February 25 polls are in merger talks with the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) with a view to withdrawing from the race in favour of the PDP presidential candidate. 
The Centre said that while it has always sneered at such insinuations, it was deeply alarmed when Mr. Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of the Labour Party, was touted as one of those considering withdrawing from the race for Atiku Abubakar of the PDP. 
The Centre said that it views such an unholy rumour with utmost disgust and calls on Nigerians to shun desperate politicians who want to ride on the back of falsehood to score a cheap political point. 
The Centre also said that it is convinced that nation-wreckers are trying to hide under the veneer of politics to unleash anarchy and confusion on the system. To this end, the body wants the electorate to be vigilant and shun desperate campaigners and their antics. 
In a statement by its Director of Public Affairs, Jenkins Udu, the Centre wondered why anybody who wants a genuine change in the country will sidestep issues of national importance and dwell instead on rumours and falsehood. 
The statement reads in part: 
“As a body interested in issues of democracy, public policy and good governance, we find such an unfounded rumour distracting and mischievous. It aims at diverting attention from the germane issues that should form the fulcrum of the campaigns and dwells instead on inanities and rumour-mongering. This is an act of desperation which should be shunned by well-meaning Nigerians. 
“We would have indulged the fancies and fantasies of