Actor Tony Umez has said he did not endorse any presidential candidate for 10 million naira.
The Christ in Me star said this in an interview with Punch published on Saturday after some media reported that he collected the amount to endorse a particular candidate.
Reacting, Tony Umez claimed he was not approached by anyone to campaign for them.
He said : “That report is false, and I don’t know where it emanated from. Nobody has approached me for anything. Nobody approached me to endorse anybody for N10m. I have my preferred candidate.”
Speaking about some of his colleagues including Zack Orji, Yinka Quadri, Saidi Balogun, Jide Kosoko, Harry Anyanwu, Chidi Mokeme and Faithia Williams who have publicly endorsed presidential candidates, Tony Umez said: “Publicly endorsing a candidate is the choice of anyone who decides to do that. Whether the person is doing it for money, or so as to be noticed in exchange for pecuniary gains, I don’t know.
“For the entertainers that have endorsed candidates, I don’t know whether they were paid or not. One cannot force anybody to support one’s candidate. Politics is a game. We all have reasons for supporting particular candidates. If my reason for supporting any candidate does not appeal to anyone, that does not give them the right to castigate me.
“It is just that there is a general feeling of rage and anger across the land because of all the things we’re going through as a nation. Some people believe that when one endorses a particular person, one is doing a disservice to the nation, going by what we have on ground. The bottom line is that politics is a game. Anyone can play it, but they should not insult others in the process.”
