Shetima, success and the shameless strive towards slander
By Bala Ibrahim
Going by the definition of success, as the accomplishment of an aim or purpose, and what is being done agaist the duo of Tinubu and Shetima, one can say the jealous or the envious, must have been thrown into a state of distress, hence the resort to shameless slander, because the two are on their way to the fulfilment of their collective ambition.
It is therefore not surprising, that, like Tinubu, whose life long ambition is to be the President of Nigeria, and who, immediately after he emerged successful in the APC presidential primary election, sponsored campaigns of calumny started spreading like wild fire, those envious of Shetima are sleepless, in their strive for shameless slander, because Shetima seems set for success.
Since his selection for the VP slot, Shetima has come under the attack of indecorous disparagers, who have been expressing lies and unfavourable opinions about him, simply because envy or jealousy, would not permit them to allow Nigeria and Nigerians, benefit from his God given brilliance, alongside his special endowment of kindness.
Yes, those who know Shetima well, say the man has a knack, and he does it with dexterity and uncommon sense of kindness. His detractors are liars, shameless liars, that would not be believed by the public, as they are destined for destruction.
There is an African proverb that says, “believe the liar up to the door of his house and not any further than that”. You would be shamed if you go further than the door of his house, because the truth, which runs contrary to what he has been saying, would be unveiled.
I would touch on two of such lies against Shetima, starting with the comments of the former Secretary to the Government, Mr Babachir Lawan, who accused Tinubu of making a disastrous error, by announcing Kashim Shetima as his running mate.
In what looks like grandstanding, Babachir accused Tinubu and Shetima of trying to Islamize Nigeria. “His decision to settle for a Muslim-Muslim ticket would have consequences, because he has taken sides against Christians. Those whom the gods want to destroy, they first make mad”.
I have ample respect for Babachir Lawan, but I make bold to accuse him of being insincere in that submission, because evidence has emerged, to suggest that he was not only part and parcel of the team that suggested Shetima to Tinubu, but that the report of the committee passed through him before getting to Tinubu. How then can he come out to accuse the ticket holders of attempting to Islamize Nigeria?
Tinubu is a Muslim, married to a Christian. Not even an ordinary Christian, but an ordained pastor of the Redeemed Christian Church of God. That’s not the disposition of a man set for Islamization.
I don’t know Shetima personally, but those who know him well enough, including Bishop Mohammed Naga, Chairman, Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Borno State, have hailed his selection asTinubu’s running mate, because they say, he is not a religious bigot.
“Gov. Shettima, in the history of Borno State, is the only Governor that has sponsored the highest number of Christian Pilgrims every year since 2011. I am speaking boldly without fear or favour because as CAN Chairman, I don’t receive salary or kobo from the Government or any institution, but the facts need to be told. For example, when Gwoza people were driven from their ancestral homes, they fled to Maiduguri, and the Governor personally came to CAN Centre in Jerusalem ward two times in June and July 2014. He gave N10 million for their upkeep at first instance, but the victims weren’t many. By the end of October 2014, the IDPs from Gwoza increased to 42,000 in that camp alone. Governor Shettima came again and gave another N10 million. He also gave an additional N5 million to Christians from Borno who fled to Cameroon to be returned home. Sincerely speaking, as a Christian and a preacher, absolutely I have nothing to fear about Asiwaju’s picking a Muslim as his running mate because he is not a religious bigot”- Bishop Mohammed Naga.
Another lie peddled by the indecorous disparagers is the display on the social media, of a picture of Shetima, purportedly feasting with Boko Haram fighters, when he was the governor of Borno State. This too, is nothing but a lie from the pit of hell. A close friend of Shetima sent a WhatsApp message to me, part of which reads thus:
*KASHIM SHETTIMA, AS I KNOW HIM*
“My friendship with Kashim Shettima dates back to his time, as Manager of Zenith Bank, in Maiduguri. It’s an interesting story, with deep family issues involved. No one could have predicted then, that he was going to become a politician, not to talk of emerging as a two-term Governor of Borno; a Senator, and today, the running mate to the APC Presidential Candidate, Bola Tinubu.
There are so many of these deliberately mischievous materials being issued now, in response to Kashim Shettima’s emergence, as Tinubu’s running mate. There’s a deliberate effort to paint a picture of “Islamization”; as well as a desperate effort to tar Kashim with a “Boko Haram “apologist” brush. It’s absolutely ludicrous! In the first place, he was Governor of Borno in that tragic phase, and I was lucky to be a direct onlooker, from the vintage point of trust and friendship, to make certain points.
1. He NEVER had anything to do with Boko Haram, either doctrinal or organisational.
2. He provided incredible, and I mean unprecedented support, for the Nigerian security forces to fight the insurgency. He never failed to offer material support to members of the security forces”.
I also spoke to someone, a respected retired senior police officer, who painted Shetima in the picture of a near sainthood. With what he said, and what is being done against the man Shetima, one can understand more, the nexus between success and the shameless strive towards slander.
