Borno 2015: Shettima and Sheriff in struggle for survival

A host of aspirants have picked nomination forms to contest various positions on the platform of different political parties. The incumbent Governor Kashim Shettima is the sole governorship aspirant on the banner of the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC). The main opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) led by former governor of the State, Senator Ali Modu Sheriff is perfecting strategies to stop Shettima from being re-elected. Adoption of Shettima as APC consensus standard bearer Two weeks ago, hundreds of APC stakeholders stormed the Multi – Purpose Hall of Borno State Government House with the sole aim of endorsing Governor Shettima for second term and that was after 28 lawmakers in the state House of Assembly were alleged to have purchased the APC governorship nomination and expression of interest forms for him. Party faithful Ali Modu Sherrif at the conference The APC stakeholders including federal and state legislators, past and serving local government chairmen, APC executives at state and local government levels among other party faithful unanimously urged Governor Shettima to seek re-election as the party’s consensus choice. Speaking at the meeting, Leader of the Local Government Chairmen, Hon Kadiri Rahis said it would amount to great injustice to the people of Borno State if Shettima did not do a second term in office. Rahis, who is the chairman of the Maiduguri Metropolitan Council, the most populous local government area in the state, said Shettima’s administration had in the last three and a half years recorded unprecedented achievements despite the lingering security challenges. The PDP hurdle With this endorsement, Shettima will have to contend with any of the many of PDP governorship hopefuls such as Mohammed Imam popularly known as Mamman Millionaire as well as Sheriff, who said he regrets choosing Shettima as his successor and vowed to stop him from being elected. Last week, the PDP held a rally in Maiduguri, the state capital where thousands of APC members defected to the opposition party. About 20,000 members of the APC and other opposition political parties in the state have defected to the PDP, citing bad leadership, selfish interest, non provision of social amenities by the ruling APC in the last four years. Among those who defected to the PDP with their supporters were former Governor Ali Modu Sheriff; Alhaji Kashim Imam; House of Representative members, Hon. Isa Kangar, Hon. Peter Biye and Hon. Abdulrahaman Terab. I erred in choosing Shettima as my successor –Sheriff Sheriff regretted choosing Shettima as his successor because of ‘’continuous socio-economic problem’’ affecting the people of the state. Noting repeated airing by state media of his indictment by the Australian hostage negotiator, Stephen Davis as a sponsor of Boko Haram, Sherif said: “If I am a sponsor of Boko Haram, then 90 per cent of those in government of Kashim Shettima are also sponsors of Boko Haram because they were part and parcel of my eight years administration,” he said. Shehu of Borno shun Sheriff In what is considered connected to the 2015 polls, the Shehu of Borno Alhaji Abubakar Ibn Garbai El-Kanemi, last Sunday, shunned Sheriff and his entourage who visited his palace to pay him courtesy call as tradition demands. The Shehu, it was reliably gathered from the sources at the palace shunned Sheriff and his supporters as the monarch was said to have left his palace following a call from the Government House some few minutes after Sheriff’s arrival. Sheriff left the palace for the PDP secretariat where he addressed a mammoth crowd after picking his party membership card, which marked his official declaration as a member of the PDP after defecting from the APC. No election is worth the blood of Nigerians –Shettima Reacting to unfolding politics and unfolding events in the state , Governor Shettima urged the military and other security agencies involved in the fight against insurgency to remain focused on the Boko Haram insurgents who are enemies of the Nigerian State saying they should not allow distractions to come their way. In a statement by Isa Gusau, his media aide, Shettima said: “No election in Nigeria should be worth the life of a single Nigerian. I am sure the Nigerian military knows this and is doing everything possible to safeguard lives and property even though in the face of challenges.” Likewise, a senatorial aspirant for Southern Borno Senatorial districts on the platform of the PDP, Mr. Nicolas Mshelizza has warned politicians to stop playing politics with people’s lives. Mr. Mshelizza while interacting with journalists in Maiduguri said “it is unfortunate that APC government in Borno closed the gate of internally displaced persons’ camp when we visited them to present some relief materials, depriving them of their livelihood.”