At the launch of Yakubu Gowon’s autobiography, Vice‑President Kashim Shettima told a juicy story: some people from Borno tried to turn him against President Bola Tinubu soon after they took office. They allegedly told Tinubu the traditional clothes Shettima had given him were “laced with charms” and that Tinubu would die and Shettima would become president.
Shettima said Tinubu summoned him after a trip to China and asked him to sit while he explained: “Sit down. Your people came to me and said I should stop wearing those dresses you gave me. They said I must have been charmed, and that I am going to die and you will become the president,” he quoted Tinubu as saying.
After that, Shettima said, “Tinubu not only dismissed the allegation, but deliberately wore the outfits for an entire week as a public rejection” and told him: “Their story did not add up because, when you gave me those dresses, I was an aspirant. I wasn’t even the candidate, and neither were you the vice-presidential candidate. “For one week, to prove to them that he is not fetish, he wore those dresses. These are some of the gimmicks that are taking place in power circles in Nigeria nowadays.”
Shettima used the moment to mourn fading trust in Nigeria, recalling the Sultan’s tale of sending fura to Gowon at Dodan Barracks and saying suspicion now defines many relationships.
Shettima’s comments come amid rumours of a Tinubu‑Shettima rift and claims he could be dropped before 2027. Tensions boiled over in June 2025 at an APC North‑East meeting in Gombe when delegates chanted and clashed after speakers avoided endorsing Shettima. Tinubu later praised Shettima as a “loyal partner” and a “very good partner on the journey for progress.”
