With all his exposure, social relations and seeming religious understanding and tolerance, former Lagos state governor and Presidential candidate of the ruling APC, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu disappointed not a few Nigerians with his avowed insistence of a muslim-muslim presidential ticket. This is coming against constructive advice from eminent Nigerian leaders of different backgrounds against choosing a fellow muslim instead of pairing with a Christian for balance governance. Let it be known that those seeking for a balanced Presidential ticket are not doing so for fear of islamisation of the country.
No no, very far from it. It is to balance a natural instinct of having a sense of belonging, pride, security, etc, which allows every segment of the population to participate in the decision making process of a nation as encouraged by democracy. If its for the fear of turning the nation into one religion, then Tinubu himself, a muslim, could have converted his Christian wife. Democracy is a growing natural component of man’s growth and development which begets respect, fairness, equity, equality, tolerance ,etc and the absence of it in an association of people of different backgrounds communicates nothing but domination, intolerance, inequality, unfairness, disrespect and disdain, etc.
All associations of human beings survive on democracy where everyone feels a sense of belonging and security, pride, satisfaction . Because everyone is a political animal and the essence of politics is participation, where participation is deliberately exclusive, acrimony, conflict, suspicion, fear (both imagine and real), comes to fore. If only Tinubu and co will keep politics aside and reflect on the morality and godliness of the decision, am sure he will understand better. But because of extreme politicisation, he sees nothing wrong in it. In his years as governor of Lagos and as the kingmaker in Lagos for years, I stand corrected: his state, where both populations are of equal status, there has never been a Muslim-muslim or Christian-christian ticket. Many have been wondering whether the action is purely to compensate loyalty or to advance a business interest or for other reasons yet unknown. The exclusive political or economic interests of such a same faith ticket has not been enumerated to the nation because there is none, not a single one. Majority of states where we have same faith tickets are areas where one faith clearly dominates the other in clear proportion..
The level of national uproar and international condemnation was enough to change the heart of Tinubu . The danger of this is that every action of government and its organs can easily be interpreted, presented and even mispresented in religious terms whether intended or not. Someone has, among many questions, asked a simple question as to the use of the asorock villa church if the VP is a muslim. This may look so simple and ignorable, but the reality is starring at us. And if for any reason it happened, another faulty line has been opened in the warped political permutations of the nation, where its sustenance even at the risk of many negative consequences will be continuously advanced. In the immediate past there has been serious concerns over the dominance of presidential appointments especially of security chiefs by one faith over the other. What then happens if both the President and his vice are of the same faith? What happens at the Federal Executive Council? As it is now, its on record that of the many cabinet Ministers in the whole 19 northern states, only 2 are Christians with the remaining muslims. Even in some of the northern states that have 2 ministers, both of them are of the same religion. These and many more can happen and many more issues certainly arise if such fears are not allayed.
Those of us encouraging a balance ticket especially in the presidency of a nation dominated by 2 major religions are not doing so for any other reasons other than for peaceful and mutual understanding and coexistence in government and the smooth development and progression of the nation’s politics . We are only seeking for what is right and expedient to be done to carry everyone along and for all of us to feel secured and our interests advanced and protected. Many more analysis with clear and empirical facts and figures have also been put forward by both concerned Christian and Muslim individuals, clerics and groups. The remains that even if an entire political party is made up of people from the same state, offices of responsibility and leadership will be shared according to LGAs and similarly down to the wards and possibly units. How would a presidency of same faith ticket looks like, especially when the nation seems to have come out of such dichotomy? What new foundation are we laying? For who?
The contentious matter shows clearly that Tinubu and some few persons are only interested in personal gains and not the collective interest of security, development, harmony and good governance of the country.
To say no Christian is as competent as Shettima in the north smacks of the highest disrespect and disdain for the entire church in northern Nigeria.
As a journalist, one of the things I benefit and cherish within the profession is the uncompromising content of objectivity.
Not only Christians, but many muslim clerics,brothers and sisters who cherished mutual coexistence are equally not happy with Tinubu over the choice of Shettima. Tinubu and his co-travellers have seen the reactions, except they chose to damn the consequences.
A new dimension of fear, mutual distrust and uncertainty has no doubt, enveloped the Nigerian polity. To a typical Christian, the decision by Tinubu is a deep indication of total and reckless disrespect to Christians and Christianity as a whole . Whatever might have confused or convinced Asiwaju in doing this, only Nigerians can stop it at the polls come february 2023.. The grave consequence is that if this succeeds, God forbid, then Christians may never find it funny anymore. It will then become, not just a perpetual winning strategy but a chosen form of democratic governance of exclusivity and marginalization. Peace loving Nigerians must rise to the occasion NOT to allow it happen.
