Atiku fumes, says Shettima’s comment ‘irresponsible’
Abubakar Atiku, the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) says a comment made by the All Progressives Congress’ vice presidential candidate Senator Kashim Shettima is ‘irresponsible’.
TheCornet reports that Shettima derided Atiku while speaking at the town hall meeting the APC presidential candidate Bola Tinubu had with business leaders on Wednesday.
Shettima had likened Atiku to Raila Odinga, a Kenyan leader who contested the presidency repeatedly but so far lost. He also said that being a manufacturer of bottled water doesn’t make anyone an expert on economy – in apparent reference to Atiku’s bottled water company.
Reacting through his media aide Paul Ibe, Atiku said he was dismayed by Shettima’s comment.
“It is with utter dismay that we listened to the presidential candidate of the APC, Bola Tinubu and his running mate talk condescendingly about other presidential candidates at a gathering that they invited members of the private sector to on Tuesday.
“The remarks from the candidates of the APC show gross irresponsibility and disrespect.
“It is indicative that the Tinubu-Shettima administration will be anti-entrepreneurship and business.
“One would have thought that the duo would use the advantage of such a gathering to talk about solutions that their party, APC, has foisted on the country. Rather, they went on the ultra highway of political indecency.
“Any business that produces products, creates jobs and delivers dividends, especially in this era of the APC administration when the country is bleeding jobs is an asset and should not be mocked.
“It is irrelevant if it is a small business or a big business. And for Shettima, it is more shameful that he will denigrate a going business that employs a large chunk of people in the Northeast region.
“Even Atiku’s opponents have acknowledged the business resume that has seen him being engaged in businesses covering farming, animal feed, beverages, banking, logistics, polymer and plastics, education, among others employing thousands directly and hundreds of thousands indirectly,” he said.
Atiku added that “politics does not confer on anyone the license to make irresponsible statements.
“For someone who self-appoints as the APC national leader, it is ridiculous that the presidential candidate of the APC failed to proffer solutions to the economic woes that his party has foisted on Nigerians in the past seven years,” the statement reads.
