The presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress, Bola Tinubu, has said that his choice of former governor of Borno State, Kashim Shettima, as his running mate in the 2023 presidential election is borne out of the urgent need to address the challenges facing Nigeria. Saying Shettima possesses strong leadership abilities which he exhibited when he was the governor of Borno is s and State.
Tinubu gave the clarification when he met with the leadership of the Christian Association of Nigeria in Abuja on Wednesday, said the choice of Shettima as strategic not religious.
Explaining further, Tinubu said,” I wanted a progressive government that was why I selected Shettima.“Choosing a Christian running mate would have been easy but that is not the case.
We have urgent challenges that do not depend on religious leanings but on the best of hands that can address it,” he added.
Tinubu, who attended the meeting with his wife, Remi, assured the leaders of the association that the Muslim-Muslim ticket of the APC would not be a problem.
The presidential candidate promised to replicate his achievements in Lagos at the federal level by working in the interest of everyone.
He said, “I seek to become Nigeria’s president not on religious grounds but on the constitution. Thanks to the body for the invitation to candidates to speak on their plans for the nation.
“I believe in the need for a secular government and for us to work in the interest of the country just as I did in Lagos State. I partnered with the Christians to improve lives and foster education. I returned missionary schools to the rightful owners, most of which were Christians.”
Dignitaries at the meeting were his running mate, Senator Kashim Shettima; Speaker of the House of Representatives; Femi Gbajabiamila; Deputy Senate Leader Senator Boroffice Ajayi, Senate Chief Whip, Senator Orji Kalu and Minister of Special Duties, Senator George Akume, among others
