Though President Muhammadu Buhari and former vice president Atiku Abubakar are the presidential flag bearers of the ruling All Progressives Congress and the Peoples Democratic Party respectively, their choices of running mates are very strategic in deciding who will eventually emerge the winner in 2019.
Nigeria is divided into six geopolitical zones, namely: North Central (loosely known as Middle Belt), Northeast, Northwest, Southeast, South-south, and Southwest.
Where the presidential candidate his/her running mates come from, their ethnic and religious affiliations are strategic in deciding the winner in Nigeria’s presidential elections.
President Buhari, a Muslim from the northwest, has retained his running mate in 2015, Osinbajo, a Christian from the southwest, for the vice presidential seat in 2019 while Atiku, a Muslim who hails from Adamawa state in the northeast, has chosen Peter Obi, a Christian and former governor of Anambra state in the southeast.
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How strong are these two major running mates in taking their bosses to the Aso Villa in 2019? Below is a brief profile analysis of the two major vice-presidential running mates.
Vice president Yemi Osinbajo
Vice president Yemi Osinbajo addressing a gathering. Credit: Facebook/Prof Yemi Osinbajo
Southwest votes:
Osinbajo hails from the southwest geopolitical zone which is a critical zone in deciding who wins the presidential election in 2019. Picking a running mate from the zone, which also happens to be a major base for the ruling APC, will greatly enhance President Buhari’s chances in 2019.
Political base:
Though Osinbajo was not very politically active until his emergence as the running mate to President Buhari in 2014, he had served as Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice for Lagos state throughout the tenure of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu (1999-2007).
He was picked as Buhari’s running mate by the national leader of the APC, Tinubu, who unarguably wields a massive influence in southwest politics. Thus, picking a running mate who has the blessing of the southwest political leader will guarantee massive votes for President Buhari in the southwest zone.
Osinbajo’s political structure
Though not a strong political stakeholder prior to 2015, Osinbajo, since his emergence as the vice presidential candidate has been building and expanding his political followership through an association of friends under the umbrella of what is known as Prof. Yemi Osinbajo Organisation (PYO).
Osinbajo’s charisma, oratory and intellectual strength
Osinbajo’s charisma is also another great factor that makes him a strong running mate. Gifted with oratory, Osinbajo, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, lecturer and pastor, is considered by many as great selling point of the Buhari administration.
The youth factor
Osinbajo, 61, being younger than Buhari also endears him to the youth across various parts of the country, a factor that can facilitate getting votes from the youth population who may not necessarily want to vote for President Buhari because of age.
Osinbajo’s religious relevance
Osinbajo’s relevance does not only stop at elections; his denomination in Christianity is also a big selling point in all the six geopolitical zones.
Daily Trust, quoting Raji Cardoso, a Lagos-based civil rights activist and social affairs commentator, states: “In a political climate where ethnicity and religious affiliations are key considerations of winning electorates’ support, Osinbajo has an edge by belonging to the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), an evangelical church with mass followership in the southwest.”
On the religious front, Osinbajo, who reportedly retains his position as the pastor in charge of the Lagos Province 48 of the Redeemed Christian Church of God despite his political office, is expected to shape the 2019 presidential election and mobilise votes for President Buhari’s second term bid.
Osinbajo’s roles in the presidency
Vice president Osinbajo oversees one of the three agenda of the present administration in the country. While President Buhari takes charge of the security and corruption fight, Osinbajo is said to be in charge of the revival of the country’s economy.
Both in his role as the vice president and acting president (when President Buhari was away on medical leave), Osinbajo has demonstrated an uncommon competence that makes his popularity rating, arguably, more than that of President Buhari.
The Buhari administration’s Social Intervention Programmes (SIP) is under Osinbajo’s office.
As the acting president, he never showed any weakness in taking sensitive and critical decisions. Below are some key things he did during the president’s absence:
- He sent the letter for the confirmation of the acting chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFFC), Ibrahim Magu, was first transmitted to the National Assembly in July 2016 for confirmation.
- In August this year, he sacked the director general of the Department of State Service (DSS), Lawal Daura, one of the most powerful kitchen cabinet members of the administration following the invasion of the National Assembly by operatives of the service.
- He also ordered an overhaul of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) of the police.
His unquestionable loyalty to President Buhari
Osinbajo’s unquestionable loyalty to Buhari is seen as a plus to the overall 2019 project. Daily Trust reports that many stalwarts in the north believe that President Buhari is safe with Osinbajo, believing that his uncompromising religious doctrine makes him less ambitious as evident in the fact that there was no evidence of rift between him and his principal.
When asked to talk about Osinbajo to the Obi, the PDP’s presidential running mate, Senate leader, Ahmad Lawan (APC, Yobe) says comparing Osinbajo with Peter Obi “is like comparing apples with oranges.”
“With all due respect to Peter Obi, he was never a vice president, he was never an acting president, so I don’t know how you can compare him with someone who has discharged his responsibilities so well with excellence and integrity with someone who was just a governor in one out of 36 states.
“To me, actually, there is nothing to compare Obi with the vice president. Therefore, we are not fair to try to compare Obi with the vice president because the vice president is far ahead of him. Maybe we should compare him (Obi) with Senator Chris Ngige who was a Governor in Anambra State but certainly not the vice president,” he said.
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Peter Obi
Peter Obi, Atiku's running mate in the 2019 presidential e, addressing a gathering.
Obi’s political experience
Obi is a former governor of Anambra state who ruled for eight years. He also served as chairman of Southeast Governors Forum throughout his tenure as the Anambra state governor. His political influence in the southeast is expected to give Atiku an edge in the zone.
Southeast agenda
President Buhari, all through his political contests, has failed to get significant votes from the southeast. despite twice picking his running mates from the region. However, the choice of at the moment when the southeast’s yearning to be in the presidency has reached the peak, may attract massive votes for the Atiku/Obi ticket from the southeast and, to some extent, the neighbouring south-south.
Knowledge of the economy
Obi’s knowledge of the economy is also expected to boost the Atiku presidency especially considering the economic challenges the current administration is facing.
Obi graduated from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka and has attended several educational institutions, home and abroad, focusing mostly on business.
He attended the London School of Economics to study Business Policy and Financial Management. He also attended Cambridge and Oxford’s business schools for Advanced Leadership Programmess.
Thus, Atiku’s choice of a deputy, it is argued, can bring about new government policies capable of rejuvenating the economy and boosting investor confidence.
A member of the PDP Board of Trustees (BoT) from the southeast, Chief Sam Nkire, as quoted by Daily Trust, has this to say about the PDP presidential running mate:
“Peter Obi is tested and trusted. He has theoretical experience, he has practical experience. He was governor of Anambra State for 8 years and gave a quality and good account of himself. He transformed the state; he is well-known in the industry.
“He knows economy more than the running mate of the APC. He is a known voice in the economic trend in the world, not only in Nigeria. And he is known not to be corrupt.
“He will bring a lot of votes from the South-East because he is known to be a man of integrity. He has the capacity to deliver if voted as vice president of Nigeria. He will complement the presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, who is also known as an industrialist and employer of labour.”
The youth factor
At 57, the youth factor also works in favour of Obi who has demonstrated versatility and strength over the years, moving from one part of the country to another and giving talks about critical issues affecting the country.
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The choices of Osinbajo and Obi as running mates: The major difference
From the above analysis, it is obvious that both the APC’s and the PDP’s presidential running mate are up to the task. However, the major difference lies in the acceptance of their choices.
While the choice of Osinbajo as the Buhari’s running mate got widespread acceptance from the party’s stakeholders, the choice of Obi was faced with some difficulty. Some PDP stakeholders in the southeast, including deputy Senate president Ike Ekweremadu, protested his emergence on the grounds that they were allegedly not consulted before the choice was made.
However, the recent visit of Atiku and other PDP bigwigs to Ekweremadu and other stakeholders of the party in the southeast has reportedly raised the hope and chances of the party winning the majority of votes in the geopolitical zone.
Is Atiku the Right Man to Defeat President Buhari? 2019 Election - Nigeria Street Gist | Legit TV
Source: Legit.ng