The All Progressives Congress (APC) vice presidential candidate Kashim Shettima has come under fire from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for attempting to share the spotlight with former President Goodluck Jonathan after he allegedly "sabotaged and frustrated Jonathan's administration in its effort to curb insecurity in Borno State."
Jonathan presided over Nigeria from 2010 and 2015, while Shettima served as its governor from May 2011 to May 2019. Shettima and Bola Tinubu, the APC presidential candidate, had attended the Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese's 70th birthday celebration earlier in the week and had taken a photo with the venerated cleric.
However, the PDP National Publicity Secretary, Debo Ologunagba, criticised the pair for their "disgraceful and hypocritical" behaviour on Thursday after they allegedly denigrated Jonathan.
The PDP spokesman also criticised Tinubu and Shettima for their recent decision to disassociate themselves from President Muhammadu Buhari's "abysmal failure."
Former President Good luck Jonathan hosted the APC Presidential, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu; his running mate, @KashimSM Shettima and APC governor's in Abuja. The parley was held at Jonathan's residence. The meeting was part of consultations ahead of the 2023 general election. pic.twitter.com/TTC7oWVoa4
— Umar Bong Muhammad (@bong_umar) August 31, 2022“In a desperate design to whitewash their battered public image, identifying with the obvious successes of the PDP and in an attempt to posture as statesmen, the APC presidential candidate, his running mate, Sen. Kashim Shettima, and other APC leaders shamelessly orchestrated a photo opportunity with the distinguished and successful former President Goodluck Jonathan of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
“This is a patriotic Nigerian leader whose PDP-led purposeful and successful government the APC leaders viciously harassed, constantly insulted, labelled, sabotaged and discredited for their selfish power-grabbing enterprise,” the statement partly read.
“Nigerians have not forgotten how Asiwaju Tinubu callously vilified and pilloried Dr. Jonathan, spewed hate against his administration, and reportedly funded a near riotous protest which was inflamed by concocted economic lies, propaganda, and false statistics to discredit the Jonathan-led PDP administration.
“Nigerians can equally recall how Sen. Shettima as governor of Borno State sabotaged and frustrated Jonathan’s administration in its effort to curb insecurity in Borno State.
“Records still have it on how the APC vice presidential candidate as governor of Borno State failed to act on a security report and directive to close schools in remote parts of Borno State and relocate students to the more secure capital of Maiduguri to write their GCE examinations; thus creating the opening for the cruel abduction of school girls in Chibok, Borno State.
“Nigerian will also note how the then Governor Shettima abdicated his duty as a chief security officer and reportedly withheld vital security information in preference to non-state actors including terrorist elements, thereby frustrating the timely rescue of the abducted Chibok girls.”
More than 200 schoolgirls were kidnapped from Chibok in Borno State in mid-April 2014 by the Abubakar Shekau-led section of the terrorist organisation Boko Haram, while Shettima was the governor and Jonathan the president. The kidnapping shook the world, and international organisations like the UN denounced the horrible crime. Some of the kids allegedly got released, while others allegedly got married off and got pregnant by the terrorists.
For over 13 years, Nigeria has been dealing with an insurgency. Terrorists have kidnapped a large number of children from schools in the north in addition to Chibok, the most notable of which are Dapchi, Kankara, and Kagara.