From Sola Ojo, Abuja
The National President of the Arewa Youth Consultative Forum (AYCF), Alhaji Yerima Shettima, has expressed the need to support the President Bola Tinubu’s administration, so that it can do more. He spoke on this and other issues of national interest.
You have been following the political trend in the country in recent times and you know there are internal grudges in all the major parties. What did you take out of the absence of the immediate past President Muhammadu Buhari, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, Rotimi Amaechi and others in the first National Executive Council (NEC) meeting of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the build-up to 2027?
Their absence does not portend any serious threat as far as I am concerned. For example, Buhari had ran the country for eight years which has led the country to where it is today. The government that came after him has been busy amending the errors of the past because the eight years of Buhari was not felt in the North. Today, the current administration is trying to see how the country can move forward, though, we still have our reservations. For example, we expect that the administration of President Bola Tinubu would have planned for the short-term impact of his long-term policies. In the past few weeks, the prices of foodstuffs are dropping by the day and foreign exchange is improving. We have been hearing about the improved security in the North. Irrespective of our differences, I think we need to support the government to achieve more, though I know that those who have natural grudges against Tinubu will not see the good things he’s doing, which is the beauty of politics. But, if you want to criticize the government, let it be constructive, not because you didn’t get one favour or the other, especially when you have the opportunity, and you didn’t do well.
Don’t forget how Buhari was so popular in 2015, which made Nigerians re-elect him in 2019. So, even though he is no longer in power, he still has a great influence in the North?
No, that may not be correct. If Buhari had contested the election for the third time, he would have failed woefully.
Can we look at it from the angle of those who shunned that APC NEC meeting and the implication of their absence in the party especially now that there are negotiations in the opposition camp to dislodge Tinubu in 2027?
Even if they merge, they won’t have any serious political influence in any party they may join. Let me break it down this way. In the last election, did Nasir El-Rufai deliver Kaduna to Tinubu? The answer is no. Even in his constituency, he could not win. El-Rufai is said to be an orator, a good talker laced with lies – making stories out of nothing. In terms of electoral value, he has nothing to offer. He has enjoyed the platform of APC to govern Kaduna for eight years. Eight years of pain and sorrow for the majority of Kaduna residents. He enjoyed the Buhari tsunami in 2015 and manipulated electoral processes to come back in 2019, he enjoyed that with the support of the Federal Government. On his own, he would not have been voted for. What came out of his second election was on record. So, for me, El-Rufai is not an issue. He only appears to be to a few people outside Kaduna as something. In recent times, because he could not get a favour from the current administration, he’s making himself to be like a champion. But we all know; he cannot deliver his polling booth.
But, the man El-Rufai has been romancing opposition leaders like the former Vice President Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, is that not a threat to APC?
Do you think Atiku is a fool to entrust his political interest to someone like El-Rufai?
But there is a saying that there is no permanent enemy in politics…?
But there is a permanent fact that a leopard cannot change its skin. El-Rufai has never been a good and reliable team player.
What do you mean?
Look at his political antecedents against his political benefactors. Look at what he did to former President Olusegun Obasanjo, a man who brought him to the limelight. Look at how he struck Atiku, the man who facilitated his coming into government. Look at how he struck the late President Umar Yar’Adua, though he went into exile during his regime. He returned to the country after Yar’Adua’s demise, but when he could not get favour from the then President Goodluck Jonathan, he struck him. Worse still, towards the end of the Buhari’s second term, he was among those who stood against him. So, Atiku is looking for someone who will help him to blow his trumpet. They will use and dumb each other. And note that even if by any chance Atiku eventually becomes Nigeria’s President, what he will do to El-Rufai will be a child’s play to what Tinubu did to him, which is making him cry all over like a child.
Now, the man Amaechi. He does not have any political relevance in Rivers State long before now, they have destroyed his structure. The former Vice President Professor Yemi Osinbajo, whom I have so much respect for, doesn’t have a political structure in Lagos. Where can he influence as far as Lagos is concerned today? Yes, he was a Vice President through political manoeuvring and all that. You could see what came out of him when he contested in 2023. So, when we talk about political icons, let’s talk about those who can pose serious threats, whom I’m not going to mention now, not those who have become politically redundant.
I’m worried that the Kaduna State House of Assembly is not doing enough to bring El-Rufai to justice. Even the governor is not doing enough. I’m worried that they allowed him to be making noise all over, becoming a blogger. But I know it is a matter of time; he will pay for all he has done. If I have my way, some of these characters will not even be featured in national television stations and newspapers where they are made to feel important when they are not. You should allow them to continue to be bloggers.
From the voices coming from the North against this administration, the North may work against Tinubu by way of supporting a northern candidate possibly in another political party. In what way can the Vice President, Alhaji Kashim Shettima, help him?
Talking about the Vice President, Shettima, he’s currently doing a lot to ensure the success of this administration, and there is no doubt about that. But he needs to do more. North does not start and end in the North East. For us in the North West, we have not felt any tangible impact yet. Most of those he brought to power are from the same place he comes from. So, he will give what Tinubu will need ahead of 2027; he has to change his pattern. He needs to be open. He needs to engage stakeholders. Don’t forget no reasonable politician will undermine what may come out of the North if you are looking for the president of this country. If he has to help Tinubu, he needs to do better than what he’s doing now.
Can Tinubu replace his running mate in 2027?
Why not? It is possible, especially with the feelers we are getting from the corridor of power, that there may be that consideration. That is why I said he needs to do more. If he continues this way, Tinubu may begin to look for alternatives. But we don’t pray it gets to that. We like our Vice President. He should reach out to people and communicate the good policies of this administration to the people. Even when the sycophants around him are preventing him from doing so, he should reach out. Keeping people who do not have electoral value and think he has the whole North in his support is not correct.
Apart from the Vice President, what about ministers from the North, what are they doing to help the administration?
Apart from the minister for State for Defence, Bello Matawalle, I cannot remember any minister from the North -West who is doing well to help Tinubu. Another person who is helping Tinubu is the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu. Though he is not a noisy type, he’s doing his job quietly, and the results are in the open. Some people who have their reservations about him are saying he’s incompetent, but to me, that is not correct even though I have not been close to him. I don’t pretend to care about issues. I say it the way they are and if you don’t like me because of that, then it is your problem. To be honest, a few of Tinubu’s extended cabinet are doing well. Imagine if we are to have three of Matawalle from the North- West, if we have up to 10 of his political appointees who can work like Matawalle and Ribadu, then he can go back and sleep. After all, the administration is doing very well. I’m from the North, but in fairness to him as someone who has the duty to protect the North, he is doing well. In recent times, we have begun to see a positive impact of this administration. The service chiefs deserve my commendation because they have been doing well. What we want in the North is peace and that is gradually returning.“”