Bishop Idahosa: How I became Rabiu Kwankwaso’s VP candidate

Bishop Isaac Idahosa, the vice presidential candidate for the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), on Monday, talked about how party leader Rabiu Kwankwaso chose him as his running matey.

Idahosa said he didn’t want to run for political office when he was named the NNPP vice presidential candidate in July. He said this during a live appearance on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily.

“If you want me to give a little background about how I came in, during the Sallah break, he (Kwankwaso) called me, ‘Bishop, where are you?’ I said I’m in Lagos. ‘Could you come to Kano so we can have Sallah celebration together?’

“I got into Kano, and a large crowd greeted me. He does this every Sallah, feeding people. He asked me to greet the people; you know I speak Hausa very well. He said, ‘Bishop, how are you going to greet them, in Hausa or English?’ I said, ‘Hausa.’

“Then we went on, and everyone was agog. He never had to tell me what was on his mind. At about midnight that Sunday evening, he called me. That was about a week to the closure of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) portal,” Idahosa said.

The former governor of Kano State, Kwankwaso, reportedly confided in the bishop and asked for help finding a running mate from the South-South. The bishop subsequently enlisted the support of some “fathers of faith.”

Idahosa claims that religious leaders asked him to “name whomever,” and he offered suggestions. However, he did mention that the investigation on that Monday had concluded fruitlessly.

“The only one we got said he had limited time to be able to go and seek counsel about that. That was Tuesday already. So, he (Kwankwaso) said on Wednesday I should come to his house at Maitama (Abuja), so I can join in the screening; that’s how he left it. Little did I realise that it was I that was going to be screened.

“So, I got there, and there was Elder Buba Galadima, the national chairman and what have you. They told me I should sit down. I sat. (They asked me) ‘If you are to be chosen as the running mate to His Excellency, Kwankwaso, what’s your vision for Nigeria?’

“I responded, ‘Is that why you brought me? Nobody told me I was coming here for screening. I assumed I was going to join the screening committee as a friend.’ I answered, ‘Well if I am to be his running mate, I don’t have any vision.

“‘I am a supporting striker because if I have a vision and I’m bringing my vision to his, then the vision comes to bear. It is his vision, his thinking, his thoughts. We’ll have to sit down and rub wits together to go with what he has, and then we’ll see how we go on.’

“Long story short, I was requested to produce my resume. I said, ‘For screaming out loud, I’m not seeking for a job. I just came to say hi and do Sallah stuff with my friend,’” he remarked.

Idahosa claimed with the help of his wife and elder sister, he received his certificate and raced back to Lagos to collect it.

“At approximately 9 pm on Wednesday, my name was flying on social media: ‘Isaac Idahosa’. Then I called on my principal, ‘Sir, what is happening? My name is all over.’ He answered, ‘And forget about that; just go to bed.’ I said, ‘Okay, sir.’

“Thursday was awful! Everybody, everywhere; my phone was beeping and ringing. Then at about 2 pm, he called and said, ‘Excellency.’ That was the first time he would mention that, classifying me that way.

“He would always say, ‘Bishop.’ Now, ‘Excellency, congratulations.’ My hands were shaking; my legs were wobbling. I said, ‘Congratulations, what?’ He said, ‘You’re my running mate,’” he said.