The Tinubu Campaign Organisation has said the church leaders that attended the unveiling of the APC vice presidential candidate, Senator Kashim Shettima, are not mechanics or yam sellers as being speculated on social media by the opposition.
Spokesperson of the Tinubu Campaign Organization, Bayo Onanuga disclosed this in a statement on Thursday.
He has described as unwarranted distractions the viral pictures and videos of some church leaders at the grand event, saying the clergymen were not fake as was being speculated in the social media.
“The APC formally presented Sen. Shettima to the public and its various organs as the running mate of its 2023 presidential candidate, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, at a well-attended ceremony,” Onanuga said.
Mr Onanuga said the event was an open affair, which allowed members of the public to attend, including the clergymen and some others now being derided by hirelings of the opposition.
“We want to say that those clergymen were not fake, not mechanics or yam sellers as the purveyors of hatred have made Nigerians to believe in the social media.
“They are not big names in Christendom yet, they are gradually building up their missions.
“They are Church leaders who genuinely believe that Nigerians must eschew politics of hatred and religious bigotry and rather embrace politics of peace and nation building.
“We therefore deplore the hysterical twisting of the presence of these men and women in cassocks and the false accusation against our candidates, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Sen. Shettima,” Onanuga said.
He added that the orchestrated social media sensation over the presence of the clergymen was needless and all calculated to detract from the huge success recorded at the unveiling held at Yar’Adua Centre.
He said Nigerians were however too wise and discerning to see through this shenanigan.
The spokesperson said, “We are well aware that the opposition parties and the sponsors of the social media charade are jittery and threatened by the intimidating political credentials of our candidates.
“The only way they hope to shift attention of public scrutiny away from their uninspiring candidates and credentials is to create social media distraction.”
