APC Explains Shettima’s Exclusion from Tinubu’s Endorsement

Last updated: Jun 17, 2025. 5:13 am

By Praise Ben

3 Min Read

APC Explains Shettima’s Exclusion

APC Explains Shettima’s Exclusion from Tinubu’s Endorsement.
Ganduje denies plot to drop Shettima, warns against internal sabotage.
Party meeting in Gombe disrupted by thuggery over endorsement confusion.

The National Vice Chairman (North-East) of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Mustapha Salihu, has clarified why Vice President Kashim Shettima was not included in the recent endorsement of President Bola Tinubu for a second term.

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EKO HOT BLOG reports that during a North-East APC stakeholders’ meeting held in Gombe on Sunday, the region publicly backed President Tinubu’s re-election bid for 2027 but conspicuously left out Vice President Shettima, sparking widespread speculation about his political future.

Speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Monday, Salihu explained that including Shettima in the endorsement would have implied that Tinubu had already selected a running mate for the next election—a decision he said would be premature and inappropriate.

“It would have been inappropriate to endorse the Vice President along with the President because it would pre-assume that he is the running mate,” Salihu stated.

In response to rising tension and rumours of internal party politics, APC National Chairman Abdullahi Ganduje denied any plan to sideline Shettima in Tinubu’s 2027 bid. Ganduje emphasised that the party remains united and no final decisions have been made regarding the vice-presidential slot.

He also condemned the violent incident that marred the Gombe stakeholders’ meeting, where some party members reportedly disrupted proceedings over Shettima’s exclusion.

In a statement issued by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Enlightenment, Oliver Okpala, Ganduje described the disruption as “grievously irresponsible” and warned against further acts of political thuggery within the party ranks.

“The disruption and acts of thuggery and brigandage by some members of the party at the zonal meeting of the North-East APC is totally condemnable, grievously irresponsible and unpatriotic to the current political dispensation in the country,” Ganduje said.