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• Says reference was to pre-2022 primary alignments
• Regrets interpretation, acknowledges governors’ role in 2023 victory
From Juliana Taiwo-Obalonye, Abuja
Vice President Kashim Shettima has moved to douse controversy over his claim that only six northern governors backed President Bola Tinubu, clarifying that the figure referred to political consultations and alignments before the June 2022 All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential primary and not support for Tinubu in the 2023 general election.
Shettima said northern APC governors rallied behind Tinubu after he emerged as the party’s presidential candidate and played important roles in the campaign that culminated in his victory, expressing regret that his earlier remarks had been interpreted otherwise.
The clarification followed widespread reports of Shettima’s remarks in Ilorin on Wednesday, where he said only six of the 19 northern governors “believed and supported” Tinubu and went on to speak about the President reconciling with governors who did not support him after the 2023 election.
Speaking at the palace of the Emir of Ilorin, Ibrahim Sulu-Gambari, during the turbaning of Kwara State Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq as Sardauna of Ilorin Emirate, Shettima had recounted the political obstacles Tinubu encountered in his quest for the presidency.
“You all know that we have 19 states in the North. Out of these, only six actually believed and supported Tinubu, but Tinubu refused to be deterred. He was able to cross the road,” Shettima had said.
He identified former Niger State governor, Abubakar Sani Bello, and AbdulRazaq among those who backed Tinubu, but stopped short of naming the other governors, saying he wanted to avoid controversy.
Shettima had also linked his account to events after the 2023 presidential election, saying Tinubu reconciled with northern governors who had opposed him.
“After the 2023 election, President Tinubu hugged and forgave all other northern governors that did not support him. That is a mark of a good leader,” he said.
The remarks were widely reported as meaning that only six of the 19 northern governors supported Tinubu’s presidential ambition in the 2023 election.
But in a clarification issued yesterday by his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Communications, Stanley Nkwocha, the Vice President sought to draw a distinction between the political manoeuvring preceding the APC presidential primary and the position of northern governors after Tinubu secured the ticket.
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“The Vice President’s reference to six northern governors who believed in and supported President Tinubu was specifically about political consultations and alignments preceding the APC presidential primary in June 2022,” the statement said.
“It was not a comment on the position of northern APC governors following President Tinubu’s emergence as the party’s candidate, nor was it intended to question their support during the 2023 presidential election.”
According to Shettima, the governors subsequently closed ranks behind the APC presidential candidate.
“Following the presidential primary, APC governors in the North rallied around the party’s candidate and played important roles in the campaign and electoral efforts that culminated in President Tinubu’s victory in the 2023 general election,” the statement said.
The Vice President also credited the position taken by northern governors with helping to consolidate wider support for Tinubu within the APC.
“Indeed, it is worthy of note that it was after the declaration of President Tinubu as winner of the 2023 presidential primaries that all other governors across the country rallied round and followed suit.
“That declaration by the northern governors hence became the aligning moment across all political divides in the quest for power shift,” he said.
Shettima said he held northern governors and other APC leaders in high regard and acknowledged their individual and collective contributions to the party’s success and Tinubu’s emergence as President.
“The Vice President regrets any interpretation of his remarks that may have suggested otherwise and hopes this clarification places the comments in their proper context,” the statement said.
He also acknowledged the role of the media in political reporting and urged journalists to ensure accuracy and context in reporting public remarks as the country moves deeper into another election season.
The clarification comes amid intensifying political activity ahead of the 2027 general election and renewed debate over the roles played by different blocs within the APC in Tinubu’s emergence as the party’s candidate and his subsequent victory in 2023.
