SHETTIMA: PASSION NOT COMPASSION.

By Tahir Ibrahim Tahir 

(Talban Bauchi) 

From the melee in Gombe, to the resignation of Ganduje, and most recently the 'coalition dramedy', the Vice-President Sen. Kashim Shettima has been the subject of public discourse, trending even more than his outing on Monday the 22nd of August, 2022 at the annual NBA conference where he was chided for his famous outfit wearing sneakers with a suit, and a wide red tie that poked out of the underbelly of his suit. It was politics galore at the time and just about any 'silly' could grab the headlines and ring all the bells unnecessarily. Sneakers with a suit has been a trend for a while, hell, even babbanriga with sneakers is now fashionable. Kashim had this kind of attention back in 2014 when he went on national TV as terrorists overran Maiduguri during the Goodluck Jonathan administration. His cry for help fell on almost deaf ears, and he let out his emotions on national TV. On the 7th of May, 2014; I wrote a piece on Blueprint Newspapers titled, "Poor Shettima, poor Borno state, poor, poor, poor!", which captured the anguish and the pains of that period.

More attention came Kashim's way after Renowned Journalist Jaafar Jaafar fired his own salvo from the North-West den of political dichotomy between the North-West and the North-East, seeking support for Kashim on compassionate grounds, belittling Kashim basically. Kashim was a war time hero because as Gov. Of Borno, a state that suffered the most from the waves of terrorism that has hit Nigeria, he was courageous enough to embark on projects in Borno state. Quite a number of the projects were well covered in my piece published on Blueprint Newspapers on the 28th of April, 2019, titled, "Kashim: a war time master builder", and in a subsequent one on Leadership Newspapers published on the 24th of May, 2019 titled, "a war time master builder does it again!" President Bola Ahmed Tinubu was in Borno in 2017 to commission 432 resettlement houses in 13 villages, as a special guest of honor to Gov. Kashim Shettima. Two years after, former President Muhammadu Buhari was also in Borno on the 25th of April, 2019 to commission a 40MW Solar Power Plant with a capacity to expand to 150MW, also built by Kashim. He also built an Asphalt plant along the notorious Baga road. The Kashin Shettima housing legacy in Borno state boasts of about 31,747 houses altogether in both the state capital of Maiduguri and war ravaged communities.

Gov. Shettima despite the war, was also able to build several healthcare centres including a 250 bed ultra-modern hospital, ultra-modern primary and secondary schools, urban and rural housing estates, a state university, and an industrial hub. The highlight of former President Buhari's visit to Borno was the launch of the industrial hub which consists: a tomato processing plant, a waste recyling plant, a biscuit production plant, pvc pipes and drip irrigation pipes production plants, elementary school desks and tables manufacturing plant, plastic mats production plants, grains and cement sacks production plant etc. Kashim was one of the best, if not the best, amongst the governors that completed their tenure in 2019! Kashim being in the Vice-Presidential nomination contest in 2022 was never on compassionate grounds. He was a performer and a good running mate. He was also picked because he worked hard for the emergence of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu as APC's Presidential candidate. He was at the forefront of the struggle, pitching against some of the cabal of the Buhari admin that worked hard to stop Asiwaju. In another piece titled, "Kashim: the Jagaba of Jagaban's campaign, published on the 20th of May, 2022; I quoted Kashim Shettima's speech in support of Asiwaju's candidacy. At the Bola Ahmed Tinubu Support Groups Management Council Conference, Shettima described Tinubu as one of those leaders who are not tied to tribal or religious sentiments, but one who is shaping Nigeria towards greater heights. Kashim was virtually one of the DGs of Tinubu’s campaign for the APC's presidential ticket. So his passion rather than compassionate considerations, was one of the clear reasons he was picked by Bola Ahmed Tinubu as his VP nominee. Kashim and President Tinubu’s relationship spans over two decades. He wasn't a mere election day political friend. He is also a mentee of Mr. President. 

Last but not least is the coalition palaver that has also directed its energy towards Kashim. Datti Ahmed, one of the coalition figures who is obviously not in contention for the presidential or vice presidential nominations in the new ADC has come for Kashim. He may be a casualty of the coalition's permutations around former Gov. Peter Obi as its candidate for a possible single term. If that happens Datti gets dropped from the ticket. What does he do? He begins to find his own square root. As with all Internally displaced politicians, he will try to pitch tent with other parties or groups. He has already cast aspersions on the coalition's agenda, stating that the coalition will not succeed if certain people do not drop their ambitions and put Nigeria first. Is he trying to goad the ruling party to give him shelter? His case might be that of "externally displacement persons", "EDPs", because neither the opposition nor the ruling party really rate him. At the end of the day, all the attempts by politicians from the North West plotting to replace Kashim, may just be fodder for his success as he continues to wax stronger. So far, there is no body language, nor a spoken or written one from President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to suggest that it is the end of the road for Kashim by 2027. The progressives governors forum led by Imo state governor Hope Uzodinma recently supported and endorsed Kashim as running mate to Mr. President. So the dynamics that thrust Kashim into the Vice-Presidency are still very much in play and if God wills it, his detractors and their antics would only serve Kashim better, increasing his popularity and chances as an even more viable and formidable VP nominee for President Tinubu in 2027. 

TALBA MADUBIN SARKI