Some governors on the All Progressives Congress (APC) platform are said to be dissatisfied with the selection of ex-Borno Senator Kashim Shettima as the party’s presidential candidate, Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
The Governors are expected to meet with President Buhari today in Daura to formally express their displeasure before deciding their next course of action.
Tinubu had been submitting a list of potential running mates to Buhari for some time, but Buhari had refused to act on it. He then took the initiative because the deadline is Friday, July 15, and formally announced Shettima before the deadline.
The announcement sparked a squabble within the party, as some of the governors who worked tirelessly to ensure Tinubu won the ticket saw his manner of breaking the news as “arrogant” and in violation of the agreement he had with them.
To that end, the governors, the majority of whom were from the North West, did not object to the choice of Shettima, but rather to Tinubu’s disregard for all of their agreements in order to announce the name.
According to reports, the Governors and Tinubu have been arguing about who will be his running mate. They had considered pandering to Tinubu because his sentiments were appealing to Shettima.
To accomplish this, the governors reportedly agreed with Tinubu that the unveiling would take place with them present to demonstrate consent and agreement.
However, announcing as if they didn’t matter in the equation, especially since some of them were uncomfortable with the Muslim-Muslim concept, infuriated them.
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Aside from the governors, Senator Abbo of Adamawa, who was a member of some of Tinubu’s support groups and committees, sent a scathing message in which he expressed his disappointment in Tinubu for defying popular opinion by running on a Muslim-Muslim ticket.
Abbo, who promised to formally submit his resignation letters today, stated that if Tinubu refused to listen to counsel as an ordinary citizen, he would be worse as president, and subsequently resigned from all committees.
On Sunday night, another top party official, Daniel Bwala, resigned over the ‘Muslim-Muslim’ ticket controversy.
“Tonight, I officially resigned my membership of @OfficialAPCng on principles and convictions that I hold so dear,” Bwala said on social media. At this point in our country’s history, our efforts and energies should be directed toward uniting our people.”
