2022-07-11 | 268 
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The Presidential candidate of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), Rabi’u Musa Kwankwaso, said he will recommend Bola Ahmed Tinubu for President, should he eventually fail to secure the position.
Kwankwaso also denied reports that he cannot be a Vice Presidential candidate to anybody ahead of the 2023 general elections.
Kwankwaso spoke on Sunday night, when he featured on Arise TV programme.
He spoke after Tinubu announced former Borno Governor, Senator Kashim Shettima, as his running mate.
Kwankwaso added that he has interacted with Tinubu very well in the past and he has no doubt about the abilities and strategies of the Lagos politician.
“Ordinarily, if I cannot get it, I can recommend him (Tinubu)”, he said.
He expressed support for Tinubu’s selection of Shettima adding that it was a good choice.
He, however, urged Tinubu to take good care of his health because campaigning is a rigorous process, advising the APC candidate to take it easy.
He said: “If you see my friend Bola, tell him to take it easy, and to take care of his health. This campaign is very rigorous and requires a lot of effort.”
Speaking on the botched proposed alliance between the NNPP and the Labour Party (LP), Kwankwaso denied reports he cannot be a Vice Presidential candidate to anybody.
During an interview with newsmen in Gombe, the former governor had said, “At the end of the day, some of our representatives thought that there should be a criteria in terms of age, qualification, offices held, performance and so on. Of course the other side (Labour Party) wouldn’t want that. Most of the people from there believe that the presidency has to go there (South East).
“If now I decide to be the vice presidential candidate to anybody in this country; NNPP will collapse, because the party is based on what we have built in the last 30 years.”
Kwankwaso had said in a separate interview on Arise that “…if anybody from the South East now, under this circumstance, becomes the presidential candidate of our party or any other party, the implication is that, because of the activities (in the region) and many other issues that are real on the ground, northern voters will certainly go for their northern candidate in another party. It is not whether I like it or I don’t like it, the fact remains that he (Obi) will lose and I will lose.”
After the collapse of the alliance, Obi chose a running mate, Datti Baba-Ahmed, who he said shared the same vision.
Commenting on the development and issues around his statement, Kwankwaso said he was misunderstood.
He said, “I didn’t say I can’t be VP to anybody. But I gave an analysis of the situation that the best arrangement was for the NNPP to have the ticket and the other party to be the vice president. Actually, we didn’t put it that way.”
Kwankwaso also revealed that his running mate will be announced before the 15th of July, a deadline set by the Independent National Electoral Commission for parties to replace their placeholders.
His words: “Let me say that we have passed that season, we are now in the process of , of course, Peter has now gotten his running mate.
“We have also sent the running mate of our party with my humble self and before now and 15th of this month which INEC said every political party to finish the substitution.
“Therefore for us in the NNPP, very soon we going to take the decision, either to allow the gentleman, Oladipo Johnson, who accepted to send his name to INEC and the party will sit down and take a decision either to substitute or take his name to continue.
“But in any case, I have answered that question that we are flexible, we have from now till the 15th of this month to make our decision and if we decide to take from any of the three zones (South West, South East and South South) so be it. I believe that at the end of the day, we will bring a vice presidential candidate that will be the best for the party and the best for this country.”
I am a freelancer blogger with a keen interest in political news and development surrounding the country, I write from credible sources, we discuss upcoming events that affect the political scene and also the economy of Nigeria
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