In a bid to beat the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC)’s deadline for submission of a name for the vice-presidential slot for the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential candidate in the forthcoming 2023 general elections, the Party has reportedly submitted a name.
The submitted name is Alh. Kabir Ibrahim Masari, a native of Katsina State who served under former President Umaru Musa Ya’Adua.
The Katsina-born politician is of the Malumfashi/Kafur constituency in Katsina State, the home State of President Muhammadu Buhari.
He is a serving member of the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies, (NIPSS).
Kabir Masari has since been trending on social media as the running mate of Tinubu.
According to sources, Masari’s VP slot is a ‘holding ticket’ while the party will look for his replacement later.
Recall that the APC has submitted the name of Tinubu and his running mate to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) but the party is still shielding the Vice Presidential candidate’s name.
Masari is a Muslim, and therefore, that means that Tinubu will be vying for the presidency on a Muslim-Muslim ticket.
The decision comes as Nigerians debate the suitability, or otherwise, of the ruling party running with a Muslim Muslim ticket even as ethnicity and religion become two big issues in the politics of the Nigerian presidency in 2023.
Who is Masari?
He is a relative of the Katsina State Governor and former Speaker, House of Representatives, Aminu Masari. He hails from a village located in Kafur local government area of Katsina State.
He served as the National Welfare Secretary of the APC when Comrade Adams Oshiomhole was the chairman of the party. When the Late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua was in office, Masari was affiliated with the PDP and left the party after Yar’Adua died.
He joined the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), the party under which President Muhammadu Buhari ran for office but was unsuccessful in winning the election in 2011. He later joined the APC.
