My Relationship with Buhari Cordial, Perfect, Says Shekarau

 

Former Governor of Kano State, Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau, has opened up over his reported strained relationship with President Muhammadu Buhari.

Shekarau was an ardent critic of Buhari and his government when he was in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), a situation that created an impression that there was rift between the duo.

However, Shekarau, at a media parley with journalists at his residence in Kano on Wednesday, said there is no crisis between him and Buhari.

According to Shekarau, there was no time when Buhari ever mentioned that there was a rift between them, adding that he had never said they had any differences.

The former minister added that he and Buhari had been associates since when the president ventured into politics in 2002, adding that they had also worked together for the creation of All Progressives Congress (APC).

According to him, “It is just a mere speculation. I am not in crisis with President Buhari. There is never a time when Buhari said there is a rift between us. And I have never mentioned that there is rift between us. You can quote me anywhere if I said there is crisis between me and Buhari.

“The president and I have been together for quite a long time. We worked together towards the creation of APC. So, as far as I am concerned, my relationship with Buhari is cordial and perfect.”

The former governor, who is now the Kano central senatorial candidate for the February 16 election, also maintained that even when he dumped the APC for PDP, he did not take that decision because of Buhari or anybody else.

He stressed however that even on returning to APC, their relationship is still intact, promising to work harmoniously with the president if both elected as senator and president respectively.

Shekarau and Buhari contested for presidency when the former was a candidate of the defunct All Nigerians Peoples Party (ANPP) as the later vied on the platform of Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) in 2011.