“Ability To Import Cheap South African Wines Does Not Make One A Guru In Economics” — Shettima Hits Obi In Akure

President Bola Tinubu has urged Nigerians to reject opposition presidential candidates, Peter Obi and Atiku Abubakar, in the 2027 general election, saying they have nothing to offer the country.

Tinubu, who spoke through Vice-President Kashim Shettima at the All Progressives Congress, APC, presidential campaign rally in Akure, Ondo State, described the opposition figures as no match for the President.

Shettima challenged Obi and Atiku to present their records in public office and policy alternatives to Nigerians, rather than relying on social media campaigns.

He said the opposition had failed to demonstrate what it could offer the country.

Shettima questioned Atiku’s political standing in his home state of Adamawa, claiming that even former governors of the state were not supporting him.

He also criticised Obi, alleging that his campaign relied on what he described as “obnoxious data” rather than verifiable achievements.

“The ability to import cheap South African wines does not make one a guru in economics,” he said.

The Vice-President described Obi’s tenure as Anambra State governor as mediocre and challenged opposition politicians to identify their major achievements in the past 25 years of democracy.

Shettima said Tinubu enjoyed what he called a “universal elite consensus” in Ondo State, contrasting it with the alleged lack of support for Obi and Atiku in their respective home states.

He cited former Ondo State Governor Olusegun Mimiko, former governorship candidate, Chief Olusola Oke, SAN, and member of the House of Representatives, Gboyega Adefarati, as evidence of the APC’s growing political support in the state.

He also claimed that former Anambra governors Chris Ngige, Chinwoke Mbadinuju and Willie Obiano, as well as incumbent Governor Charles Soludo, were not aligned with Obi.

With Ondo’s registered voters put at 2.1 million, Shettima said the APC was targeting at least 1.2 million votes from the 1.8 million residents said to have collected their Permanent Voter Cards, PVCs.

He described the turnout at the rally as a political statement, recalling similar outings in Cross River, Nasarawa, Akwa Ibom, Rivers, Ebonyi and Jigawa states.

Shettima also contrasted the opposition’s activities with what he described as Tinubu’s achievements in the last three and a half years, while commending Ondo APC leaders for putting their differences aside.

In his address, Ondo State Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa promised to deliver one million votes for Tinubu in the 2027 presidential election.

Aiyedatiwa thanked the President for what he described as progressive policies and interventions, saying Ondo voted massively for Tinubu in 2023 because of his leadership record as governor of Lagos State.

He said Tinubu had justified the confidence reposed in him through reforms whose benefits, according to him, had reached the grassroots.

The governor also thanked the President for appointing three ministers from Ondo State, overseeing the finance, interior, and youth portfolios.

He listed his administration’s achievements to include the recruitment of more than 6,000 workers, road and bridge projects, rehabilitation of health institutions and support for young entrepreneurs.

“We will all go to the mountains, to the hills and everywhere to tell the people about your re-election,” he said.

The APC National Chairman, Prof. Nentawe Yilwatda, described Tinubu as the most experienced, exposed, prepared and competent among the 18 presidential candidates expected to contest the 2027 election.

Yilwatda said Tinubu had confronted the country’s economic challenges, adding that more than 31 states which, according to him, could not pay workers’ salaries when the President assumed office could now meet their obligations.

The Director-General of the APC Presidential Campaign Council and former Zamfara State Governor, Abdulaziz Yari, said Tinubu had demonstrated commitment to Ondo State through appointments and other benefits.

“These five positions are equivalent to about 10 ministers in Ondo,” Yari said.

He said the President had given the state considerable attention despite its not being an oil-producing state, citing infrastructure projects, the nine per cent allocation and cash transfer arrangements.

Yari urged party leaders to intensify mobilisation, saying the APC was not merely seeking victory in Ondo but a substantial vote margin for Tinubu nationally.

“We are not looking for Asiwaju to win in Ondo State. We are looking for Asiwaju to get millions of votes that will give the margin for the presidency,” he said.

The Chairman of the Progressive Governors Forum and Imo State Governor, Hope Uzodimma, said Ondo had 2.4 million registered voters, but only 1.4 million had collected their PVCs, leaving nearly one million cards uncollected at INEC offices.

He urged residents to collect their cards, embrace unity and put their grievances aside, describing Ondo as Tinubu’s political home.

Former Edo State Governor and Senator representing Edo North, Adams Oshiomhole, urged youths to support Tinubu, saying Nigeria needed statesmen rather than petty traders in politics.

Oshiomhole praised Tinubu for appointing what he described as competent people into key positions, citing the Minister of Finance, and said the administration was investing in roads and railway infrastructure.

He also said Tinubu had approved an additional N70,000 for federal civil servants and was committed to job creation.

According to him, the President plans to undertake a major review of the power sector in his second term, with a view to doubling electricity generation and addressing transmission challenges.

The senator urged youths to compare the time and resources required to establish a factory or refinery with those needed to set up a shopping mall, arguing that Obi’s business orientation was unsuitable for long-term national development.

Former Ondo State Governor Olusegun Mimiko pledged to work with other political leaders to deliver votes for Tinubu and all APC candidates for the National Assembly.

Mimiko commended the President for building what he described as an elite consensus on major national issues, including state police, but cautioned that the establishment of state police would not automatically end insecurity.

A party leader and former governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in Ondo State, Chief Olusola Oke, said the state’s leaders were indebted to Tinubu for projects and appointments.

Oke pledged to work towards delivering the one million votes promised by Aiyedatiwa and dismissed what he described as social media propaganda against the APC.

The Senate Leader, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele, urged party leaders to rally behind Aiyedatiwa, whom he described as the state campaign coordinator, to achieve the one million-vote target.

Bamidele said Tinubu had sent two messages to the party: that the January 16 election would be for the presidency and National Assembly, not the governorship, and that Aiyedatiwa remained the sole campaign coordinator but must carry all stakeholders along.

He called for the inclusion of Chief Mrs Oladunni Odu, DI Kekemeke, Oke, Wale Akinterinwa and Mimiko in the campaign structure, saying unity among party leaders would make the target achievable.

The Senate leader also cited Tinubu’s appointment of three ministers and two ambassadors from Ondo State, to the United Nations and Russia, respectively, saying the appointments should translate into votes for the President.