2023 Presidency: "Buhari Declined to Nominate My Running Mate", Tinubu Reveals

• The APC's presidential candidate, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has spoken on how Kashim Shettima became his running mate
• Tinubu said initially, he gave President Muhammadu Buhari the honour of making the choice, an offer the president turned down
• Tinubu added that Buhari, instead, asked him to choose whoever he deems fit for the position ahead of 2023

Akure, Ondo - Asiwaju Bola Tinubu said President Muhammadu Buhari did not consent to choose a running mate for him ahead of the 2023 presidential election.

Tinubu said this on Sunday, October 30, when he paid a visit to a former leader of Afenifere, Pa Reuben Fasoranti, in Akure, Ondo state capital, This Day reports.

The All Progressives Congress (APC)'s presidential candidate said at the time, President Buhari told him to choose his own running mate.

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Moreover, Tinubu disclosed that before the ruling party's primary election, he had doubts about winning the ticket.

The former Lagos governor said Buhari and the APC northern governors proved to him that Nigeria would survive all the issues surrounding its unity.

In Tinubu's speech, monitored by Daily Trust, he said:

“The battle was tough and, at a point, I was in doubt. There were many rumours and I became confused over what to believe. Buhari told me I promoted his name with the way I won the primary election because the process was clean and transparent and nobody could accuse him of manipulating it.

“The president said I gave him credibility and I deserved to be President. When I asked him to nominate the Vice Presidential candidate, he said I should pick whoever I wanted and it is the reason I chose a competent man in Kashim Shettima who has never lost any election. I particularly went for him because he had protected Christians in time of trouble in his state."

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Muslim-Muslim ticket: No hope for APC as northern Christian party leaders seek another platform

Northern Christian leaders in the All Progressives Congress (APC) had come to the conclusion that the Muslim-Muslim ticket is divisive, and as such, they were looking for an alternative platform.

The northern Christian politicians made this submission during a summit held in Abuja on Friday, July 29, attended by Babachir Lawal, Yakubu Dogara, and Elisha Abbo, among others.

The APC members in the summit noted that the Tinubu-Shettima arrangement for 2023 is unjust and insensitive.

Source: Legit.ng