The presidency on Thursday clarified that remarks made by Vice President Kashim Shettima about northern Governors’ backing of President Bola Tinubu referred only to pre-primary political consultations, not to their stance after Tinubu became the All Progressives Congress’s (APC) presidential candidate in the 2023 election.
A statement by the Vice President’s Senior Special Assistant on Media and Communication Stanley Okwocha, said Shettima’s reference on Wednesday in Ilorin to “six northern Governors who believed in and supported President Tinubu” related specifically to alignments ahead of the APC presidential primary in June 2022.
The statement added that the comment was not intended to cast doubt on the position of northern APC Governors during the 2023 election campaign.
“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 office said.
The Vice President expressed respect for the region’s governors and other party leaders, acknowledging their “individual and collective contributions” to the party’s success and President Tinubu’s emergence.
He apologized for any reading of his remarks that suggested otherwise and said he offered the clarification to place the comments “in their proper context.”
The statement also thanked the Nigerian media “for its longstanding professionalism” and urged reporters to maintain accuracy and context when covering public remarks as the country heads into another election season.
