Kashim Shettima: When the Vice President-Elect Votes in Maiduguri

Kashim Shettima: When the Vice President-Elect Votes in Maiduguri

By: James Bwala

There was so much crowd, young and old with beaming faces that welcomes the Vice President elect, Senator Kashim Shettima when he casts his vote at the Kukawa Polling Unit – PU 23 as a demonstration of his franchise in the gubernatorial and state assembly elections in Maiduguri. The VP elect, who drove himself to the polling unit became centre of attraction along the routes he took as people realizing it was the vice president elect rushed to block the road to cheer and celebrate him. 

Shettima will go into history book as the first to break the jinx to become vice president elect in Borno state. At Kukawa unit, it took the strength and tactical monuever by the security operatives to clear the road from people who wants to catch a glimpse of the vice president elect. Indeed, as the people say it was different Shettima from the governor and senator they know. This is the vice president elect of the federal republic.

After the vice president elect voted at his unit, he took time to go round on assessment of the election generally in the state, which he described as satisfying during a chat with the media. Shettima expresses confident that votes cast from the results coming in will return APC to clinching the state Governorship and state assembly. He told journalists that APC administration will continue to ensure good governance as it’s watch word.

Speaking on the election, a leading observer group, the Transition Monitoring Group (TMG) lauded the peaceful and orderly conduct in which the exercise was carried throughout the period with the team coordinate, Mr. Ibrahim Muhammad describing the manner in which the exercise was conducted as impressive excerpt for the low turnout of voters, who perhaps have traveled to their villages to vote in displaying their rights as citizens to do so. 

“The exercise is generally peaceful, the low turnout we saw is in Bulumkuttu ward of Maiduguri. So far there is no case of violence, intimidation or harassment. We have deployed our members across local governments to monitor the governorship and House of Assembly election.” He said.

Also residents who came out to vote said officials of the INEC have come out in time. “We have our voters card and the election officials are also on ground but we are still hanging out still checking the situation around to see whether there is the possibility of having our chance to vote again. We believe that this time around Borno people would not waste their time and energy to wait in queues for hours for accreditation. From all indication they are getting it right and we will not loose our franchise.” Ibrahim Usman, a resident of Bullumkuttu Abuja said.

Another resident of Maiduguri, Mohammed Kaloi said he is hopeful that the election will end peacefully in Maiduguri and the people will demonstrate their rights in picking a leader for another four years. ” I pray for anyone that may emerge to continue in the steps of development that we are witnessing in the state. I also hope that with the state having the vice president elect, we can have the eyes and ears of the federal government here to speed up development.”

READ ALSO: https://newsng.ng/intel-unveils-technology-plans-to-turn-around-african-fortunes/

It was also observed that the elections officials and security are available even earlier before voters started casting their votes. An adyhoc staff of INEC at the Bulumkutu Kasuwa Area polling unit said: “We actually don’t have any problem here for now. We have all our election materials ready and collected. We have the BVAS machine and security. We also have our back up configuration facilities. The internet service is also ok and available unlike during the last election.

While expressing confidence in INEC and the general outcome of the election during an interview with journalists in Maiduguri, the vice president elect reiterated commitment of his party and government in ensuring that the game is played according to the rules. And when asked to assess the accomplishment of the administration on the winning scale he said if by measurements and evaluation the Borno state governor has been placed far above any other governor in the country. He therefore said he is confident that Zulum is returning to continue with the good work he started in the last four years of his administration in Borno.

Speaking on the victory of the APC in the February 25 general elections, Kashim Shettima judged the 2023 presidential elections as the best in the history of Nigeria. He stated that, it would remain a point of reference that Benue state, which is a Christian dominated state gave APC a distancing numbers ahead of other parties to clinched the presidential ticket. 

According to Shettima, in a game where the president lost the elections in his state and the presidential candidate of the APC also lost the elections at his doorsteps there can never be a fair game as it is. “We have beaten religious and regional politics on a level playing field. We are going to hit the ground running as representative of the Nigerian people by ensuring fairness and justice to all.”

Kashim Shettima: When the Vice President-Elect Votes in Maiduguri