By Joshua Tosin Ogunsakin 
Vice President Kashim Shettima’s political future may be hanging in the balance as signs from within the All Progressives Congress point to his exclusion from the 2027 presidential ticket.
Credible sources in the Presidency and the APC told Sunday Punch that there are ongoing political permutations that could compel President Bola Tinubu to drop him for another running mate.
This comes as four northern governors, two each from the North-East and North-West, and two principal officers in the 10th National Assembly are reported to be eyeing the VP’s seat.
The odds against Shettima
According to credible sources, the plot against Shettima stems from open criticism of the Tinubu administration by Borno State Governor, Prof Babagana Zulum, and the Senator representing Borno South, Ali Ndume.
Zulum is a staunch loyalist of Shettima, his predecessor.
The governor was a vocal voice against the tax reform bills when they were first introduced by Tinubu. He said it favoured Lagos more than the North.
He has also consistently criticised the Federal Government’s handling of insecurity in his state, slamming information minister Mohammed Idris.
The Borno governor openly protested the omission of Shettima’s name during the adoption of Tinubu for a second term at the North-East APC stakeholders’ meeting on June 15 in Gombe State.
The meeting descended into chaos when the VP’s supporters attempted to attack the party’s Zonal Vice Chairman, Mustapha Salihu, for endorsing Tinubu without mentioning Shettima as his running mate.
Salihu had said, “We want to reaffirm and also adopt the endorsement earlier done by the National Working Committee, that Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu is endorsed to be a sole candidate for the 2027 election.”
Following his failure to acknowledge the vice president, angry delegates began chanting, “Shettima! Shettima!! Shettima!!!” in protest, with one aggrieved supporter confronting Salihu on stage.
Zulum also insisted that Shettima must be adopted as the APC’s vice-presidential candidate for 2027.
Although Ndume’s current level of loyalty to Shettima remains unclear, the lawmaker has consistently criticised the Tinubu administration.
On July 17, 2024, the National Working Committee of the APC wrote to Senate President Godswill Akpabio requesting Ndume’s removal as Senate Majority Whip.
The APC cited Ndume’s “unguarded outbursts” against the government and described his remarks as “unbecoming” of a senior party member.
A source said, “The main problem for Shettima is the conduct of politicians from his state, including the governor, Ndume, and others close to him, who have been openly critical. The perception is that he can’t rein them in.
“If a sitting governor and senator from your state, especially one you handed over to, keep criticising the government, it becomes a problem.”
Following the chaotic APC North-East stakeholders’ meeting, Sunday Punch gathered that some governors and lawmakers had begun positioning themselves as potential vice-presidential picks.
One insider said, “It is very much within the realm of possibility because the VP is not particularly close to the President. It’s not like the President has said categorically that he will change his running mate in 2027, but it is not certain that he won’t.
“Still, that hasn’t stopped people from positioning themselves just in case the President decides to.”
Another source added, “Two principal officers from the National Assembly and about four governors are involved, two each from the North-East and North-West. I know of a few, including one within the VP’s circle.”
Northern govs eyeing VP’s seat
Sunday Punch gathered that the governors of Yobe, Gombe, Kaduna, and Katsina, Mai Mala Buni, Muhammadu Yahaya, Senator Uba Sani, and Dikko Radda, respectively, are being considered as potential replacements for Shettima.
Sources also listed the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abass, and Deputy Senate President, Barau Jibrin, as possible contenders.
“It’s usually governors who want that position. There’s the governor of Yobe, Gombe, Kaduna, and Katsina. The Katsina governor’s interest is no secret.
“There are also signs that the Speaker and Deputy Senate President are eyeing it. They represent different political blocs,” a source said.
Another claimed that a “confidence vacuum” may be working against Shettima.
“He has unfettered access to the President. That’s true. He meets with the President often.
“But somehow, he hasn’t earned the President’s confidence. He hasn’t demonstrated leadership or taken initiative. He mostly operates under instructions and has not shown independent capacity,” the top party official said.
Govs, Jibrin deny interest
However, the Director-General of Press Affairs, Gombe Government House, Ismaila Misilli, dismissed claims that Governor Yahaya is eyeing the VP slot.
Speaking to Sunday Punch, he said, “The governor is 100 per cent with Tinubu and is not pursuing the vice-presidential slot. The position of Vice President isn’t one you campaign for.
“The governor’s priority is to deliver for Tinubu in 2027 and complete his own second term successfully. If some people believe he is capable of being vice president, that’s another matter.”
Similarly, the Chief Press Secretary to the Katsina State Governor, Ibrahim Mohammed, denied that his principal was angling for the VP’s position, calling it “mere political permutations.”
He said, “My principal has just completed two years in office and has two more to go. He has an agenda for Katsina State and is implementing it effectively. I believe all these are just political permutations.”
Similarly, a close associate of Jibrin also dismissed the report that the Deputy Senate President was being positioned to replace Shettima in 2027.
The associate, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the claims were a distraction from the lawmaker’s legislative duties.
“There’s no truth in any of it. Senator Barau is focused on his job as Deputy Senate President and on representing the people of Kano North Central. He’s not chasing rumours or backroom politics. He’s committed to the mandate he was elected for.”
APC NWC, NEC members divided
Insiders in the APC told Sunday Punch that discussions about Shettima’s return had divided members of the National Working Committee and the National Executive Committee of the party.
However, the national leadership of the APC is said to be trying to manage the matter to avoid creating a crisis for the party in the North-East.
A principal officer of the party, who was contacted to speak on the matter, said, “It is a sensitive matter, I cannot comment on that; I am sorry.”
But another senior party official told one of our correspondents that the speculation about dropping Shettima as Tinubu’s running mate had “elements of some truths.”
The insider also confirmed that some governors were actively lobbying for the position, with backing from some party members.
He stated, “The move to replace Shettima with another running mate for President Tinubu in the 2027 election is real. Some party leaders are working tirelessly to persuade the President to drop the vice president and choose either a governor from the North-East or another from the North-West.
“This has sparked a cold war among party leaders. It is ‘cold’ because only the President has the constitutional right to select his running mate.
“So, it’s not exactly a crisis, but rather high-level political manoeuvring. At the moment, various key stakeholders in the party, particularly members of the NEC and NWC, are discreetly supporting different candidates. While they may not admit it publicly, that’s the reality, and in my opinion, it’s a normal part of party politics.”
Another source described the situation as a routine political development, emphasising that it was all about differing interests.
“Some party leaders are insisting that Shettima should remain President Tinubu’s running mate in 2027, while a few others prefer someone else. That is very normal and expected.
“Ultimately, it is the President, as the party’s 2027 candidate, who will make that decision. So, they are merely trying their luck by attempting to influence his choice,” he added.
Attempts to get a response from the APC National Publicity Secretary, Felix Morka, were unsuccessful.
However, the party’s Deputy National Organising Secretary, Nze Duru, maintained that there was no confusion in the party regarding the 2027 presidential and vice-presidential candidates.
In an interview with our correspondent, he said, “APC is calm and cool. The party is focused at this time primarily on two things: governance and providing the dividends of democracy to Nigerians, and addressing what matters to the people of the country.
“Our candidates have the first right of refusal as our candidates in upcoming elections. It is the President who will decide his running mate. He made that choice previously in a very well-informed and deliberate manner, and it was on the strength of that, among other factors, that we won the 2023 election. That’s how democracy functions.”
We will retain the VP slot – North-East APC
However, the Zonal Chairman of the APC in the North-East, Salihu, said the zone would retain the VP slot as it was not ready to relinquish it to another zone.
Some stakeholders in the North-Central have, for almost a year, been asking Tinubu to pick his deputy from the zone in 2027 if he wants their support.
But Salihu said the North-East was ready to do everything to retain the vice-presidential slot.
In an interview with Sunday Punch, Salihu said, “Emphatically and categorically, we will not relinquish the VP slot to another zone. This is a federation. Every region has the right to aspire, to look for what they think is theirs. But we believe we are right and should be the rightful beneficiary of that (VP) slot.
“We are going to hold on to it and do everything to retain this seat through political consensus. Even with the North-Central, we are going to sit with them and show them the reason they should allow and support us in keeping the VP.”
Salihu explained that there was no ill intention in not mentioning Shettima’s name when he declared the adoption of Tinubu for a second term at the meeting.
He said he was merely carrying out the resolution of the NWC.
“Nobody comes into a primary election with a running mate. They come individually. After securing the ticket, the candidate then picks his running mate. So, in line with that, the National Working Committee at the summit in Abuja passed the resolution to adopt Tinubu as our sole candidate.
“As North-East Zone Chairman, and also a member of the NWC, I only reaffirmed and adopted the endorsement earlier made by the NWC. So, there’s no harm intended.”
‘Tinubu must not drop Shettima’
Meanwhile, a member of the House of Representatives has cautioned President Tinubu to think carefully before making up his mind on whether to stick or part ways with Shettima.
The federal lawmaker declared that without the political reach of the VP, the President couldn’t have won the 2023 election after securing the flag of the APC at an elective convention in Abuja.
Speaking with Sunday Punch in confidence, the lawmaker, who hails from the northern part of the country, credited Shettima for the support Tinubu got in that part of the country two years ago.
He said, “If he (Tinubu) retains Shettima, he will reduce internal rancour and sabotage in the north. If he drops him, he will widen the scope of his challenges.
“Without Shettima, the President couldn’t have won the election in 2023. We know the key roles played by Shettima and other northern stakeholders. He built bridges across parties and leveraged them to get the required percentages for the APC presidential ticket.
“Shettima used members of the opposition in so many instances and places to secretly work against their parties’ interests in their states.”
Regardless of who the President runs with, the lawmaker warned that he would not find it easier “this time around.”
The Punch