Mike Arnold, a former Republican Mayor of the US City of Blanco in Texas, has said he would not endorse a possible Peter Obi-Rabiu Kwankwaso presidential ticket in the 2027 elections.
Arnold, in a post on his verified X (formerly Twitter) page on Monday, May 25, urged supporters of Obi not to embrace the likely partnership between the two Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) chieftains.
He said that although he admires Obi, he is not yet totally convinced of the former Anambra governor’s abilities.
Arnold posted on X: “I have an open mind. What will close my mind instantly, without any wiggle room, is an Obi-Kwankwaso ticket.”
He continued: “Nigeria does not need more of the same. It does not need different gasoline running through the same engine. It does not need a different conductor on the train — not when the train has to follow the same damnable tracks.”
Explaining his opposition to Kwankwaso, Arnold, the founder of Africa Arise International, described the former Kano State governor as “the Sultan’s man” and “a snivelling bootlicker to Sokoto.”
He also urged Obi to “pick a running mate who is not a puppet of the Sultan.”
The current Sultan of Sokoto is Alhaji Muhammadu Sa’ad Abubakar III. He ascended the throne as the 20th Sultan on November 2, 2006, succeeding his brother, the late Muhammadu Maccido. READ ALSO Nigerian pastor sparks buzz online after saying people counting in Naira are poor, video goes viral
Furthermore, the American made several other allegations, including accusing Kwankwaso of introducing Sharia law in Kano.
Arnold added: “As Governor of Kano state, Kwankwaso formally declared Sharia law on June 21, 2000, and established the Hisbah Board — the religious enforcement agency that has been arresting Kano residents for “improper dress” and “indecent mixing of the sexes” ever since.
He lost his re-election in 2003 anyway, for being insufficiently Islamic for the Kano clerical establishment.”
