2023: Shettima suffering from amnesia - Atiku’s campaign

Nigeria’s opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Wednesday, hit back at the vice presidential candidate of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) Kashim Shettima, for describing its presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, as a political tourist who will be permanently retired to the United Arab Emirates after the 2023 election.

Mr Shettima made the statement at the presentation of the manifesto of the APC to the business community and organised private sector in Lagos on Tuesday.

He took a swipe at the former vice president and questioned his academic qualification. He said the certificate Atiku got from the Kano School of Hygiene only qualifies him to be “wole wole” a Yoruba word for sanitation inspection officer.

Mr Shettima also mocked Atiku for his long history of participating in presidential elections. He stated among other things that the PDP candidate is not Abraham Lincoln, a former president of the United States, but Raila Odinga, who has a reputation of losing several presidential elections in Kenya.

ResponseBut the PDP on Wednesday through the Director of Strategic Communications, Presidential campaign council, Dele Momodu, said Mr Shettima is suffering from amnesia and the APC candidates cannot unite Nigerians when they’ve shown open disdain for the democratic and voting rights of certain ethnic groups within their domains

“We have watched in utter incredulity and amazement the boldfaced speech made yesterday by the APC Vice Presidential candidate, Alhaji Kashim Shettima, at an event in Lagos. He alleged gleefully that the PDP Presidential candidate, H.E Atiku Abubakar (GCON) cannot unite Nigeria when “he has not united his political party”.

“We believe that Alhaji Shettima, in a moment of deliberate amnesia, must have tried to point fingers at the specks in another man’s eyes while studiously ignoring the giant logs in his own eyes.

“The APC is in total disarray with prominent members of his party openly apologising to Nigerians for the unmitigated disaster it has foisted on Nigeria since 2015. This is one of the reasons APC members have been migrating in droves to PDP.

“It took almost forever for APC to achieve the simple task of constituting its Presidential Campaign Council, due to the total lack of unity in their party. It is very obvious that APC has become completely rudderless and many self-respecting members are jumping ship and being recovered by PDP.

“How can these APC candidates ever unite Nigerians when they’ve shown open disdain for the democratic and voting rights of certain ethnic groups within their domains? Everything about APC and its candidates has been shrouded in secrecy and they are just unable to tell Nigerians the truth about anything.

“How can Nigerians be expected to place their faith in such mysterious characters?

Alhaji Shettima alleged that Atiku Abubakar cannot be trusted with the economy of Nigeria. No heresy could be worse than this. Nigerians would want to know what businesses the APC candidates have managed personally and successfully except living outlandishly on government booty and largesse.

“Atiku Abubakar started business as a teenager and served meritoriously as a government officer in the Customs where he assisted so many Igbo traders, according to available testimonies. In Atiku’s private life, he remains one of the biggest employers of labour in Nigeria. He has brought jobs to Nigerians instead of shipping jobs out.

“How can APC be expected to guarantee the safety of lives and properties when right under the watch of Alhaji Shettima as Governor of Borno State, Boko Haram became an intractable menace and Nigeria is yet to fully recover till this day?

“PDP is extremely proud of its antecedents and former Vice President ATIKU ABUBAKAR and Governor IFEANYICHUKWU OKOWA are fully ready to recover Nigeria from the hands of the most incompetent leaders in the history of Nigeria,” Mr Momodu wrote.