The Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, has said President Bola Tinubu will not name a running mate for the 2027 election until after the All Progressives Congress (APC) convention.
This statement was made in an interview with Daily Trust, in response to recent rumors suggesting that Vice President Kashim Shettima may be dropped ahead of the next presidential election.
These rumors grew stronger after an APC stakeholders summit in Gombe endorsed President Tinubu for a second term without mentioning Shettima, which caused some confusion and a brief disruption at the event.
Some attendees raised concerns about why Shettima’s name was excluded during the endorsement, leading to public debate and assumptions about a possible fallout between the president and his deputy. But Onanuga has called such assumptions baseless.
Onanuga said, “That’s what happened under Buhari; he was nominated first and later picked his running mate. You don’t do both at once.
“Once INEC releases the timetable, the party convention will hold, and if the president is nominated again, he will choose his running mate.”
The presidential spokesperson also dismissed the speculation of a rift between President Tinubu and Shettima as ‘a beer palour gist’, saying he is not aware of it.
“I’m not aware of any issues between the president and the vice president. From what I know, they have an excellent working relationship. All the speculation is just beer parlour gossip,” he said.
“People even say ridiculous things like Seyi Tinubu is the vice president. Absolute nonsense.
“In this country, deputy roles, whether deputy governor or vice president, are always surrounded by rumours. Even when there’s no conflict, people around them will concoct stories. But as far as I know, Tinubu and Shettima work together very well.”
Onanuga also rejected the insinuation that Tinubu’s relationship with former deputies during his stint as Lagos governor is an ominous sign for Shettima.
“That’s just speculation. Yes, when he was governor, there were issues. In his first term, he and his deputy, Kofo, didn’t get along, and she had to leave,” Onanuga said.
“Femi Pedro replaced her. In the second term, he retained Pedro, but Pedro later defected — he wanted to be governor. That’s why he had to go. I don’t want to reopen old wounds, but that’s what happened.
“So, it’s wrong to say he has a pattern of discarding deputies. There were specific political circumstances each time. That’s what I’m explaining.”
