The presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has stated in an exclusive interview that he would not be pressured into dropping Senator Kashim Shettima as his running mate.
The former Lagos State Governor made this known through the spokesman of the Bola Tinubu Campaign Organisation, Bayo Onanuga, on Wednesday.
Recall that Tinubu’s choice to pick Senator Kashim Shettima as his running mate for the 2023 general election, which means the APC will be fielding a Muslim-Muslim ticket, has drawn widespread criticism from concerned Nigerians, religious leaders, opposition parties, and the Christian Association of Nigeria.
Speaking with Bellnews, Onanuga stated that Bola Tinubu would not be pressured into replacing the former Borno Governor.
“That is not possible. There is nothing like that going on in our camp. We have seen this move before, all these campaigns to pitch us against fellow Nigerians.
It happened in 1993, and the result was clear. There was pressure from several quarters for (MKO) Abiola to drop (Babagana) Kingibe because of his Muslim background.
“I pray people will come back to their senses to discover that what they should be looking at is not religion but competence of the candidate to deliver and take the country to a greater height.
They will soon realize that. As I said earlier, there is no likelihood that our presidential candidate will drop Shettima. He has selected him, and Shettima will remain. He is a cool candidate. Either of them can be a president,” he said.