Kashim Shettima Biography
Kashim Shettima Mustapha is an outspoken Nigerian banker and politician.
His name Kashim means ‘lovely and just’ and Shettima means ‘born to be a rich person’. He has served as the Governor of Borno State from 2011 to 2019 and as a Senator for Borno Central since 2019.
He is a member of the All Progressives Congress and was chosen as the party’s vice presidential nominee in the 2023 presidential election by presidential candidate Bola Tinubu. He was born on the 2nd of September, 1966, and is currently 55 years but will turn 56 years old this September.
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Kashim Shettima is a strong and practical Muslim Nigerian from the Kanuri tribe in Borno State.
Early Life/Education
Kashim Shettima was born to Alhaji Shettima Mustafa Kuttayibe’s family in Maiduguri, Borno State, Nigeria.
From 1972 to 1978, he attended Lamisula Primary School in Maiduguri; then from 1978-1980, he attended Government Community Secondary School in Biu, which is located in southern Borno Statcareer.
Later transferred to Government Science Secondary School in Potiskum (now in neighboring Yobe State) where he got his secondary school leaving certificate in 1983.
He received a BSc in Agricultural Economics from the University of Maiduguri in 1989 after completing his studies there.
From 1989 to 1990, he completed his one-year National Youths Service Corps (NYSC) requirement at the now-inoperative Nigerian Agricultural Cooperative Bank in Calabar, the state capital of Cross River State in South-South Nigeria.
In 1991, he graduated from the University of Ibadan in Southwest Nigeria with a Master of Science (MSc) in Agricultural Economics. From 1991 to 1993, Shettima worked as a lecturer in the department of agricultural economics at the University of Maiduguri.
Family
He is happily married to the humanitarian Hajia Nana Shettima, and they have three children, two daughters, and one son.
Not much is known about his children, parents, and if he had any siblings. His daughter Amira graduated with a first-class degree at her university.
Her siblings’ names are not known nor are their details.
Early Career
Kashim Shettima worked as a lecturer from 1991 as an agricultural economics department lecturer and left in 1993.
Kashim later changed fields when he moved into the banking sector in 1993 where he was employed at the head of accounts unit as an agricultural economist by the now discontinued Commercial Bank of Africa Limited office in Ikeja, Lagos State, Nigeria, and worked there for four years until 1997.
He became the Deputy Manager at the African International Bank Limited in 1997 where he moved to and rose to become the Manager in 2001.
He later crossed over to the Zenith Bank in Maiduguri as head of its main branch where he rose to become Senior Manager/Branch Head to Assistant General Manager (AGM)/Zonal Head of Northeast to Deputy General Manager/Zonal Head of Northeast then finally rose to be the General Manager in five years before he resigned from the Zenith Bank in 2007.
Political Career
He held the position of Commissioner in 5 Ministries from 2007 and 2011. Kashim Shettima was named Commissioner of the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development of Borno State in the middle of 2007.
Later, under his predecessor as governor of Borno, Ali Modu Sheriff, he was appointed Commissioner in the Ministries of Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Education, Agriculture, and later Health.
Kashim Shettima was a member of the now-defunct All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) where he contested the Borno gubernatorial primaries but lost to Engineer Modu Fannami Gubio in January 2011.
He later became the flag bearer in a second primary under the flag of ANPP in February 2011 after Engineer Modu Gubio died from gunshots by Gunmen.
He won the gubernatorial election and became governor on 26th April 2011 while defeating the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, Muhammed Goni, and he was later inaugurated on the 29th of May 2011.
After the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) merged with other parties to form the All Progressive Congress (APC) in 2013, Kashim Shettima under the All Progressives Congress, APC, won the Borno State governorship election in 2015 and was re-elected.
He was undisputedly selected as Chairman of the Northern States Governors’ Forum, an umbrella organization of Governors in the 19 States in northern Nigeria, and has been instrumental in implementing significant changes to the forum’s operations with a focus on fostering northern unity and reviving struggling industries that are specific to northern States.
Senator Babakaka Bashir was replaced by him when he won the Borno Central Senatorial District election in February 2019. Kashim Shettima was chosen by All Progressive Congress, APC, presidential candidate Asiwaju Ahmed Bola Tinubu to be his running mate in the upcoming presidential election on July 10, 2022.
Source of Wealth
Kashim Shettima’s source of wealth has been accumulated over his years as a lecturer and his career as a banker where he rose to be the General Manager. His estimated net worth exceeds $3 million.
Corruption cases
Kashim Shettima has been accused of looting over 600 Billion Naira that was accrued to the Borno State Government since June 2011 and no single job worth 10 million Naira was executed over the years.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) began investigations into the alleged looting of the Borno state treasury by Alhaji Kashim and some of his cabinet members.
He has also been allegedly accused of misdirecting government funds and donations for the displaced persons’ welfare, the general insecurity, and other sundry non-performing projects to his pockets to the detriment of the displaced persons.
While also taking a loan amounting to 23 billion Naira and claiming very high expenditure on the education sector even when all schools in the state remained shut for over two years.
He has also been linked to sponsoring the dreaded terrorist group, Boko Haram on several occasions.
Conclusion
Alhaji Kashim Shettima is an outspoken Muslim politician who has won so many awards such as Governor of the year 2014, 2015, and 2016 from several newspaper companies.
He is fluent in Hausa Language and English Language with many local and international listeners praising him for being intelligent and articulate in his speaking.
Despite the controversies and allegations surrounding him, he has had a successful career.
