The don said this during the launching of a book titled, ‘Inside Buhari’s War Room’, written by Philip Agbese, in Abuja on Thursday.
Katuka said, “President Buhari has remained consistent in his anti-corruption fight, both as a former military Head of State and as a democratically elected President of Nigeria.
“Another interesting part is that, sometimes, people mix these things. Persons such as Ibrahim Babangida, Sanni Abacha, Murtala Muhammed, were never presidents. They were heads of state, but Buhari was not only a military Head of State, he is now a president.”
Katuka further revealed that, as chairman, Northern Christian Professors, he was initially bothered about the Muslim-Muslim ticket of the All Progressives Congress presidential candidate, Bola Tinubu and his running mate, Kashim Shettima, adding that he was, however, relieved after Tinubu and his team later explained the reasons for such decision to him.
Katuka said, “Initially, I was bothered about the APC Muslim-Muslim ticket, and this was justifiable, being the Chairman, Northern Christian Professors. However, Mr. Tinubu and his team later explained the basis for the decision to me, and I’m now satisfied.
“Mr. Tinubu noted that he initially wanted to pick a Christian northerner as running mate, but he couldn’t find one with a stronger reach close to that of Atiku Abubakar. And, politics is a game if numbers, hence, he had to settle for Shettima, a northern Muslim that has a good relationship with the Christian community, and has a wider reach as a politician.
“Nobody can force a particular religion on Nigerians, and Tinubu has always supported the Christian community, so, a Muslim-Muslim ticket is no threat to Christians.”
The book author, Philip Agbese, noted that Buhari’s anti-corruption fight inspired him to write the book, adding that it was noteworthy that the president had been consistent in his fight against corruption.
Senator Smart Adeyemi, who represented the vice presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress, at the book launch, noted that he wasn’t supporting Tinubu’s candidacy due to party, religious, or tribal affiliation, but for his competence and antecedent.
Adeyemi said, “When we support a candidate, it shouldn’t be due to our party, religious, or tribal affiliations. I’m not from the South-West, I’m from Kogi and I’m a Christian, yet I support Tinubu and Shettima because of their antecedents and their achievements.
“Tinubu has a legacy and he also has structures, Lagos is his legacy, and he has built people all across the country. I also benefited from Tinubu’s legacy.
“What legacy or structure does the other major contenders , Atiku and Obi have? There are so many people who benefited from Tinubu. These are people are men of honour and integrity.
“The PDP are capitalists, they privatised our national assets, and it’s not easy to back off contractual agreements, that’s why it has been difficult for Buhari to recover some of these assets sold by the PDP administrations.”
