Kalu, who is a former Abia State governor and senator representing Abia North, spoke last night during a personal visit to Asiwaju Tinubu in his Abuja home.
The two leaders met behind closed doors.
A source close to the APC standard bearer said Kalu pledged to mobilise the people of the Southeast for the actualisation of Asiaju Tinubu’s presidential ambition.
“Though the meeting was very brief, the two leaders had a heart-to-heart discussion with Senator Kalu pledging to mobilise his people in the Southeast to support and vote for the Tinubu/Shetimma ticket.
“Senator Kalu promised to swing into action as soon as the campaign proper starts by the end of the month by combing all the nooks and crannies of the Southeast.”
Also, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Aviation, Smart Adeyemi, has supported the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, and his running mate, Senator Kashim Shettima.
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Adeyemi publicly expressed his support while addressing reporters yesterday in Abuja.
He insisted that the Tinubu and Shettima ticket has the capacity to revamp the economy and fight insecurity, if elected in next year’s election.
The Kogi West senator said he had set in motion a Bill to amend Section 84 of the Electoral Act to ensure that no political party in the country would field same faith tickets in the future, after the Tinubu/Shettima presidency.
Adeyemi said: “…On the very contentious issue of the Muslim/Muslim ticket, let me say very clearly that I am in total support of the issues and concerns raised by the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN). I am a practising Christian.
“After Asiwaju emerged as the APC presidential candidate, Senator Kashim Shettima was nominated as his running mate. And that has, of course, generated a lot of reactions and agitation. The CAN has made a lot of cogent observations.
“For instance, many key positions were seen to be given to people who belong to the same faith. No doubt, these were pressing factors that ignited the position of CAN, and for good reason. During my many consultations and mediations, a colleague of mine asked me a question: ‘When was the last time we produced an Inspector General of Police from the Igbo extraction? When last have you seen anyone from certain parts of the country as Service Chiefs?’ I had no definite answers to these questions.
“Having noted all of these very cogent points, we must not confront these issues in such a manner that will obstruct the fabric of our national unity, peace and stability, which we have all fought very hard to keep.
“Yes, there have been oversights in key appointments in the past, which tended to keep the Christians at a disadvantage, and this has caused apprehension amongst us.
“I have had the privilege of knowing the candidates personally before now, and my support for them as individuals is not based on the fact that they are members of the APC or because they are Muslims, as I am a Christian myself. It is simply based on my knowledge of them as individuals; it is based on their track records and antecedents.”
He added: “Generally, when you want to assess an individual, you look at his past records, his person, his family life, then you ask questions from his friends and associates. You look at those he mentors, but more importantly, you look at the antecedents of such a person.
“In this case, the factors to consider are: Is the individual in question qualified and worthy of the position he seeks to occupy?
“Does he have the capacity to revamp and reshape our nation? And my simple answer to those questions is yes. Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu possesses the capacity to change the face of the Nigerian economy.
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“I am in no doubt that his Presidency will further promote national unity, peace, stability, economic recovery, accelerate the socio-economic and political development of our nation and enhance our global image in the comity of nations.
“When I was Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) president, a position I held for two terms, the media received tremendous support from Asiwaju.
“For my second tenure, he supported me immensely with no conditions attached. Ironically, one of my major contenders who happened to come from the Southwest (where Asiwaju is from) did not receive the level of support given to me by BAT. All this cumulated in my emergence.
“This is I, Smart Adeyemi, from Kogi State, a northerner and a proud Okun man. But yet, he gave his support, simply on the consideration of my capacity to get the job done. Such is Asiwaju’s nature as a person.
“The problem Nigeria has had in the time past is that we have had leaders who were parochial. Today, people speak about the great potentials of Lagos. Had it not been utilised for the well-being of the people, it would have all gone to rots.”
The Nation