Tensions within Nigeria’s ruling All Progressives Congress reached a dramatic peak on Saturday when Vice President Kashim Shettima deliberately avoided acknowledging party National Chairman Abdullahi Ganduje during a high-profile reception in Akwa Ibom State.
The incident, captured on video and witnessed by numerous political dignitaries, occurred at a ceremony honoring Governor Umo Eno.
According to The Whistler’s report, Shettima engaged in customary greetings with Senate President Godswill Akpabio and Governor Eno before conspicuously bypassing Ganduje, who was positioned third in the receiving line.
In what observers described as a calculated snub, the Vice President extended his handshake beyond Ganduje to greet other officials standing behind the party chairman, leaving attendees visibly shocked by the public display of apparent hostility between two of the APC’s most senior figures.
The awkward encounter appears directly linked to escalating speculation about Shettima’s political future and growing uncertainty over his inclusion on President Bola Tinubu’s 2027 re-election ticket. The handshake incident represents the latest manifestation of internal party friction that has been simmering beneath the surface of APC politics.
This public confrontation follows explosive scenes at the APC North East Stakeholders Consultative Meeting in Gombe earlier this week, where similar tensions erupted over Shettima’s vice presidential prospects. During that gathering, party officials formally endorsed President Tinubu for a second term while notably omitting any reference to Shettima’s continued role as running mate.
The Gombe meeting descended into chaos when Comrade Mustapha Salihu, the party’s National Vice Chairman for the North East, failed to mention Shettima during his endorsement speech for the 2027 ticket. This deliberate exclusion triggered immediate protests from delegates who began chanting “Shettima! Shettima!!” in apparent displeasure at the omission.
The situation rapidly deteriorated when a Shettima supporter rushed the stage to physically confront Salihu, sparking a violent melee that engulfed the International Conference Centre in Gombe. Security personnel struggled to restore order as chairs flew across the hall during more than twenty minutes of sustained disorder.
The unprecedented chaos forced numerous high-ranking officials, including former and current governors, federal ministers, National Assembly members, and other prominent North East political figures, to abandon the venue in disorder. The incident highlighted the deep divisions within the party’s northern constituency over the Vice President’s political survival.
These dramatic developments underscore the intensifying power struggles within the APC as key stakeholders begin positioning themselves for the 2027 electoral cycle. The public nature of Saturday’s snub between Shettima and Ganduje suggests that internal party tensions have reached a point where traditional diplomatic courtesies are being abandoned in favor of open confrontation.
Political observers note that such public displays of disrespect between the Vice President and party chairman represent an extraordinary breach of protocol that could signal deeper institutional fractures within Nigeria’s ruling party as it approaches crucial decisions about its 2027 leadership structure.
