•The Inside Story
Contrary to the widely held belief that Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, the APC presidential candidate sat down and single-handedly picked Senator Kashim Shettima as his running mate, City People can authoritatively reveal that he consulted widely across the Stakeholders in the party before he settled for Shettima, who he once referred to as a friend and brother. Remember that they are contemporaries. They both served as Governors of Lagos & Borno.
An insider in the Tinubu camp revealed that Tinubu consulted President Muhammadu Buhari, APC Governors and the Elders of the party and the conclusion was that Shettima was the best choice and it was more about the electoral value of Shettima than Religion.
That was why a political analyst recently revealed that anyone criticising Tinubu and the APC for their choice of Shettima as VP candidate doesn’t understand politics.
According to him, politicians are in politics to win elections and the choice of Shettima is because he is the one who can deliver votes for APC in the North-East, especially Borno.
That is why Prof. Zulum, Borno Governor received the news with the greatest joy and enthusiasm. Shettima is his mentor. He calls the choice the wisest choice at this point in time.
Senator Soji Akanbi also revealed why Tinubu chose Senator Kashim Shettima. He said it is because Politics is about interests.
He said it is a well-known fact that Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, being a democrat with a deep understanding of the country and her complexities will not take such an important decision without wide consultation”.
Contrary to the widely held view on social media, the selection of Shettima as APC Vice Presidential candidate seems to enjoy wide support from politicians and religious leaders in Borno State where a Catholic leader supported his selection and acknowledge his leadership quality.
City People gathered that in the history of Borno State, there is no Governor that has been fair to the Christian community as much as Gov. Kashim Shettima.
City People gathered that in the history of Borno, Shettima is the only Governor that has sponsored the highest number of Christian Pilgrims every year since 2011.
Bishop Mathew Hassan Kukah, Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese has also explained that the decision of the APC to present a Muslim-Muslim ticket for the 2023 presidential election was based on the calculation of what works for the party.
Dr Reuben Abati revealed why Tinubu may have picked Shettima. In his Tuesday With Reuben Abati Column he mentioned Electoral value as one of the reasons. Tinubu chose Shettima. “Politicians make choices in order to win, not to lose. Senator Shettima is Kanuri from the North East. Would it have been better to pick a running mate from the North West which has more voters compared to the entire North East? A running mate to Tinubu from the North West would have meant picking from the same zone as the outgoing President and from a zone that had previously produced late President Shehu Shagari, late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, former Vice President Namadi Sambo and a couple of former military Heads of State (Murtala Muhammad and Sani Abacha).
The North East has to date produced only Prime Minister Tafawa Balewa from Bauchi State. The Kanuris are not as populous as the Hausa-Fulani but would the Northern voter worry about that or be more concerned that the presidential running mate of the APC is a Muslim? Besides, Senator Shettima is from the same geopolitical zone as the PDP Presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar. His presence on the APC ticket could swing significant votes in favour of the party and divide Atiku’s votes. I had in fact argued in a piece titled “June 12, 1993, Running Mates and 2023” (ThisDay, Tuesday, June 14, 2022) as follows: “If Tinubu must pick a Muslim running mate as has been argued, his best choice is Kashim Shettima, former Governor of Borno State.”
There are also strong indications that part of the primary reasons Asiwaju chose the former governor is the desire to capitalise on the Security challenge that the country has found difficult to address for over 20 years. Shettima was the Governor of Borno in the wake of Boko Haram and had met with their leadership at one point or the other. The stronghold of Boko Haram still remained in Borno. Having a Vice President come from the base of insecurity will draw the attention of the country to the state. A pro-Asiwaju supporter who spoke to City People stated that Shettima may likely be entrusted with the office of Special Security assignment with adequate funding.
“Shettima may not be as popular as some people’s choice on the media space, but we cannot undermine his electoral value and intellect. Asiwaju has to be sure he’s putting the round peg in the round hole to achieve all that he promised Nigerians.
Another analyst also hinted on the borderline advantage of the state. “Borno borders the Republic of Niger to the north, Lake Chad (and the Republic of Chad) to the northeast, and Cameroon to the east. You cannot undermine the economic and security importance Borno to Nigeria. Asiwaju’s decision is the best for his intentions” he added.
What the APC needs is more than media celebrities who make headlines based on their assertions. APC needs those who can work on the front stage. I am very certain that Asiwaju will pass his gesture of reward round. He understands the strength and weaknesses of people, even from the very first chat with anyone. That is one strange thing about him; it doesn’t take more than a minute to evaluate and know where a person can function best.
“The Asiwaju that I know will make everybody happy in a way they won’t even believe. “If you don’t get what you want, be certain you will get what is worth it”, he told City People.
However, for no official reason, the All Progressives Congress has postponed the unveiling of Kashim Shettima as Tinubu’s running mate, but it is on good report that Asiwaju intends to pacify most aggrieved prospects before they all move on to the next stage of the campaign
Who is Kashim Shettima? He is a banker and politician who has served as Senator for Borno Central since 2019. He previously served as the Governor of Borno State from 2011 to 2019. A member of the All Progressives Congress, he is the party’s vice presidential nominee in the 2023 presidential election running alongside Bola Tinubu.
He graduated from the University of Maiduguri and the University of Ibadan. After schooling, he entered business and banking, eventually rising to hold several high-ranking executive positions at banks. By the mid-2000s, Shettima was the manager of Zenith Bank’s Maiduguri office before leaving the position to enter the state cabinet of Governor Ali Modu Sheriff in 2007.
After four years in the cabinet, he was elected governor in 2011 and re-elected by a wider margin in 2015; his term in office was dominated by the deadly Boko Haram insurgency. Shettima was later elected to the senate. Despite being renominated for Senate in 2023, he withdrew from the nomination to become Tinubu’s running mate.
READ ALSO: WHY TINUBU WENT FOR MUSLIM/MUSLIM TICKET – LAGOS LAWMAKER, HON. OMITITI
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