Shettima says Tinubu backed Atiku in 2007 after PDP exit, at Kaduna rally
- Vice-President Kashim Shettima said Tinubu gave Atiku Abubakar a platform to run for president in 2007.
- He spoke in Kaduna at the APC's flag-off for the 2027 presidential campaign.
- Shettima urged northern voters to back Tinubu's re-election, citing past support for northern leaders.
Vice-President Kashim Shettima has said President Bola Tinubu gave former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar political backing and a platform to contest the presidency in 2007, after Atiku left the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Shettima spoke on Saturday in Kaduna at the All Progressives Congress (APC) flag-off of its presidential campaign for the 2027 elections, according to Leadership and Naija News.
He said Atiku was "harassed and chased out of the PDP" at the time and turned to Tinubu, whom he called the "Lion of Bourdillon", for support.
Shettima used the story to argue that Tinubu has a long record of backing northern politicians who sought the presidency. He named Atiku, National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu and the late President Muhammadu Buhari.
He said Tinubu supported Ribadu's presidential run in 2011, and stood behind Buhari in the 2015 and 2019 elections, which he said helped secure Buhari's victory and second term.
He urged Nigerians, and northern voters in particular, to weigh that history when judging Tinubu's administration and his bid for a second term in 2027.
Why it matters
The rally opens the APC's campaign for a vote still more than a year away, and the party is making its case to the North, a region with a large share of Nigeria's voters.
Atiku, who was the PDP's presidential candidate in 2023, has not been named as a candidate for 2027 in these reports. The sources do not say how he or the PDP responded to Shettima's remarks.
Naija News reported that Tinubu arrived in Kaduna for the event and was received by top government officials, security chiefs and party leaders, including campaign Director-General Abdulaziz Yari and APC National Chairman Professor Nentawe Yilwatda. The President was also expected to commission projects and meet state stakeholders.
What happens next
The APC campaign now moves into its nationwide push ahead of the 2027 general elections, with the party leaning on Tinubu's past alliances to court northern support.
