Bola Tinubu, the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress has been accused of insulting Northern Christians over his choice of a Muslim running mate.
A Labour Party chieftain, Iliya Kwache said this during an interview with Punch’s Hindi Livinus.
Reacting to APC’s Muslim-Muslim ticket, Kwache said:
Tinubu’s greatest insult to the Northern Christians in the APC is telling them directly that none of them is qualified to be his running mate.
Well, if I may ask, is Boss Mustapha the current Secretary to the Government of the Federation, a seasoned lawyer, not a Christian Northerner? Boss Mustapha, the SGF by all rules and standards, is the number three person in the executive arm of government, after the president and vice president, yet Tinubu said he’s not competent.
Yakubu Dogara was a former Speaker of the House of Representatives; Reverend Yakubu Pam is the Executive Secretary of the Christian Pilgrims Board. Simon Lalong is the serving Governor of Plateau State. Binta Garba, the first Adamawa State Party Chairman of the APC, has 18 years of legislative experience behind her, they are all Christians, yet Tinubu, has the audacity to say they are not competent to be his running mate.
By the way, these are just a few examples; there are many more highly qualified individuals spread across the 19 Northern States.
If I may ask, what competence is Tinubu bringing to the table, apart from saying it is his turn? Is it Leah Sharibu who is still in captivity because she is a Christian or the remaining Chibok schoolgirls given to Boko Haram by Kashim Shettima, who refused to comply with simple federal government directives on school closure?
It is obvious that as far as Islam in Nigeria is concerned, Bola Ahmed Tinubu (BAT), in the eyes of some northern Islamic preachers, as well as the northern oligarchs, is not a true Muslim. Again, Tinubu has been sold a lie and told in no uncertain terms by some Islamic Hausa preachers and self-serving Muslim Northern governors that his own Islam is still baggage.
The governor’s are saying, “We cannot convince our people that you are a true Muslim by their own standard. But those saying that it was politically suicidal for Tinubu to pick a Northern Christian as his running mate have made a bigger mistake. They have been told a lie.
The Christian Northern population is about 50%; otherwise, we challenge the Federal government to include tribe and religion in the coming 2023 census. Be assured that the votes of the Northern Christian community will determine the winner of the 2023 presidential election. Take these words to the bank.