Vice President Kashim Shettima has urged Nigerians, particularly voters in the northern region, to vote for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and other candidates of the All Progressives Congress (APC) at all levels in the 2027 General election.
VP Shettima made the call during the flag-off of the Presidential campaign of the All Progressives Congress (APC) at the Ranchers Bees stadium, Kaduna.
The Vice President said President Bola Tinubu had in the past supported northern candidates during elections and it is time for the region to pay him back by re-electing him for a second term of office.
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“I want us to bear in mind and go down memory lane. Bola Tinubu is one person who has quite fiercely identified with the north over the years. it is pertinent to mention that when former Vice President Atiku Abubakar was harassed and chased out of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), he ran to the lion of Bourdilon, who gave him political succourr and support and a platform to contest for the presidency of this country in 2007.
“Again, in 2011, President Tinubu supported another northerner; Mallam Nuhu Ribadu to contest for the presidency of this country and you can be a witness that in 2015 and 2019, President Tinubu stood solidly behind the late President Mohammadu Buhari and that secured him first and second term victories.
“This explains why we have all stood with him. This is a mark of honour and our faith in a man of honour. We need to support him by re-electing him for a second term,” he said.
Giving another reason the North should re0elect President Tinubu, VP Shettima said the APC has initiated and delivered infrastructure projects that have been of immense benefit to the people of the north.
“For my brothers in the north, I have a simple message for you. We have built a record of continuing projects initiated by our predecessor. This is why we have registered substantial progress on the Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano (AKK) gas pipeline.
“The Kano-Maradi railway; the Lagos-Kano rail corridor and the Abuja-Kaduna-Kano road have been completed and we are also advancing work on the Sokoto-Badagry highway that will open up a vista of opportunities for agricultural production in this country,” he said.
For Kaduna State in particular, the Vice President listed the establishment of institutions of higher learning among other democratic dividends currently being enjoyed by citizens of the State.
He used the opportunity to canvas for support for the Governor of the State, Uba Sani, who is also seeking a second term of office.
He said: “For the good people of Kaduna State, we have seen why you stood tall to renew the mandate of the APC; to give His Excellency Governor Uba Sani, a mandate to redeem the fortunes of this great State. This wisdom has made Kaduna State a place unified, a place where the man from Zonkwa sees the man from Zaria as a brother; a place where the dividends of our democracy are felt in Kachia as they are in metropolitan Kaduna. This is the legacy of the APC in Kaduna State. This is the mandate we have come to ask you to renew a second term for the APC from top to bottom.’
“We have the courage to come to Kaduna today because we have kept our promise to never relegate you. First and foremost, we promise to bring back the glory of Kaluna as the nation’s center of learning, we have brought you the Federal University of Applied Sciences Kachia, haven’t we? We have carried forward the transition to the Federal University of Education Zaria, haven’t we? We have established a State Vocational Institute in Rigachukun, Soba and Samaru Kataf with over 4000 graduates. So, APC is the party to do business with,” the Vice President stated.
He emphasised that the APC is in power because Nigerians saw the party in 2023 as the best option for moving the country forward therefore, they should re-elect the party to continue its good works.
