'Jonathan Is A Mature Leader, He Replied My Letter' – Shekarau

KANO, Oct 17, (THEWILL) - Kano State governor and presidential aspirant of the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP), Malam Ibrahim Shekarau has described President Goodluck Jonathan as mature leader. Shekarau, who disclosed this when the Goodluck/Sambo Campaign team, led by the Director General, Senator Dalhatu Tafida paid him a courtesy call at the Government House on Sunday, said Jonathan has demonstrated a sense of maturity in his style of playing politics without bitterness. He said, Nigerians are anxiously waiting to see that all the parties nominate credible candidates for the forthcoming 2011 general elections. The governor argued that if all the political parties can give credible candidates, the electorate would be encouraged to vote for a leader of their choice in next year’s general elections. According to him, if the parties fail to produce such credible candidates, there is the tendency that the elections may be characterized by voters’ apathy. Shekarau recalled that recently he wrote to all the Presidential aspirants, Ministers and legislators, informing them of his intention and why he wants to vie for the Presidency, but to his surprise, only President Goodluck Jonathan replied him, which he said demonstrated the level of maturity of the President in the game of politics. The visit of the Goodluck/Sambo’s Campaign team to Kano is a clear demonstration that democracy has come to stay, despite our political differences, pointing out that anybody who wants to lead must put the interest of the country and its people above all other personal interest. Shekarau maintained that without relative peace in the country, the struggle for power will be worthless, because a leader will not lead an empty country. He said, if the political parties produce a mushroom candidate, then the electorate will have no alternative than to vote for a lesser evil, out of evil, stressing that all the parties are necessary evils that may disenfranchise the electorate. . Concluding, Shekarau maintained what is more important at this point in time is to produce a credible candidate that will be acceptable to all Nigerians at the end of the primary elections, so that our internal process in electing our candidates will be in the right direction. Earlier in his speech, Dalhatu, informed Shekarau that the Goodluck/Sambo Campaign team were in Kano to market the joint ticket of Goodluck/Sambo for the 2011 Presidential race, adding that although that Kano is slightly different, because the Chief Executive of the State is not with them but believe that in the final analysis “he will be very useful to us because we want Nigerians to understand our code and as such he is not with us now but in spirit and in no distant time join us.” Dalhatu stressed that he cherishes the way Shekarau plays his politics of understanding, citing an example that during the Governors Forum, it was Shekarau, who doused the tension when he boldly told his colleagues that the issue of zoning arrangement was entirely a PDP affair, which they should not dabble into, which is a clear case of statesmanship. The Campaign coordinator told Shekarau that their campaign tour has taken them to Sokoto, Kebbi, Zamfara, Katsina and Kano.