"Bogus Statistics": Kwankwaso Reacts to Shettima's Attack on Obi

"Bogus Statistics": Kwankwaso Reacts to Shettima's Attack on Obi

  • NDC Vice Presidential candidate Rabiu Kwankwaso pushed back against Vice President Kashim Shettima's attack on Peter Obi's grasp of economic data
  • Shettima made the remark at the APC Presidential Campaign Council inauguration in Abuja on Wednesday
  • Kwankwaso said he regularly cross-checks figures cited by Obi and has found most of them to be accurate

Rabiu Kwankwaso, the Vice Presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), has rejected Vice President Kashim Shettima's characterisation of NDC presidential candidate Peter Obi as "the master of bogus statistics and incoherent economic prescriptions."

Shettima made the comment on Wednesday, October 154, during the inauguration of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Campaign Council in Abuja.

Rabiu Kwankwaso, the NDC 2027 vice-presidential candidate, has kicked against the criticism of Peter Obi by Vice President Kashim Shettima.
Rabiu Kwankwaso knocks Kashim Shettima for criticising Peter Obi Photo Credit: @KwankwasoRM, @PeterObi
Source: Twitter

Kwankwaso responded the following day during an appearance on Channels Television's Politics Today on Thursday, October 15, insisting that Obi has a firm command of both local and global economic data.

Kwankwaso backs Obi on statistics

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The former Kano State governor said he personally verifies many of the figures Obi cites in public, and that the overwhelming majority have checked out. He conceded that occasional slips of the tongue were not unusual for any speaker but argued this fell far short of the pattern Shettima had described.

The former Kano governor noted:

"For him (Shettima) to come and make that statement, I don't think he is correct. So, I am happy that our presidential candidate is conversant with statistics, not only in this country but all over the world, in Europe, Asia, everywhere, and I think that is a good one."

NDC vs APC rivalry heats up

The exchange marks an early sign of the sharpening rivalry between the NDC and the ruling APC ahead of the 2027 general elections. Peter Obi was ratified as the NDC's presidential candidate on May 29, 2026, after leaving the African Democratic Congress earlier that month.

Shettima's remarks at the APC campaign council launch set the tone for what is shaping up to be a combative election season, with senior figures on both sides already trading pointed assessments of each other's candidates.

See the video of Kwankwaso on YouTube here:

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Source: Legit.ng

Authors:
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Bada Yusuf (Politics and Current Affairs Editor) Yusuf Amoo Bada is an accomplished writer with over 5 years of experience in journalism and writing, he is also politics and current affairs editor with Legit.ng. He holds B.A in Literature from OAU, and Diploma in Mass Comm. He has obtained certificates in Google's Advance Digital Reporting, News Lab workshop. He previously worked as an Editor with OperaNews. Best Editor of the Year for Politics and Current Affairs Desk (2023) by Legit.ng. Contact: bada.yusuf.amoo@corp.legit.ng