2027: Fear grows Tinubu may drop Shettima as running mate

There are emerging signs that President Bola Tinubu may not pick Vice President Kashim Shettima as his running mate for his second term bid.

Daily Insider reports that Shettima's name and picture was conspicuously absent, during the weekend, when the south east zonal of the All Progressives Congress (APC) held a stakeholder's meeting in Enugu.

Similar occurrence took place in 2025 when the APC in North East held a stakeholders meeting which Governor Babagana Zulum protested and which made the venue of the meeting chaotic.

"Now, yesterday in South East, the same thing happened. They only endorsed PBAT for second tenure, even the billboards don't have Shettima's picture," a netizan observed.

The North East APC meeting turned rowdy in June 2025 over the endorsement of President Bola Tinubu without Vice President Shettima for a second term. 

The controversy started when Mustapha Salihu, the APC's National Vice Chairman for the North East, endorsed Tinubu but didn't mention Shettima, sparking outrage among delegates. The situation escalated when Abdullahi Ganduje, the party chairman, also endorsed Tinubu alone, leading to protests and physical altercations. Security personnel had to intervene to prevent further violence.

The meeting, held in Gombe State, was meant to review the party's work in the region and plan for the 2027 elections. Supporters of Shettima were upset, feeling he was being sidelined, while some party members defended Ganduje's actions, saying he was just doing his job as party chairman.