An association of cattle herders, Kulen Allah Cattle Rearers Association of Nigeria (KACRAN) has warned politicians and religious leaders against calling on Nigerians to vote along ethnic and religious lines.
In a press statement signed by its national president, Hon. Khalil Bello, the group said: “ We in KACRAN have noted with dismay and dissatisfaction, the habit of some politicians, religious leaders and preachers, who play primitive and parochial politics with religion by inciting and promoting inter faith conflicts in their political campaigns and messages.
“We are assidously working hard to bring peace between cattle rearers and their beloved brothers, the arable farmers. We utterly condemn this practice, and hereby appeal to all politicians, religious leaders and all Nigerians to discountenance and disregard political campaigns where people are told to vote on religious or tribal lines.”
KACRAN while appealing to politicians and religious leaders to pay more attention to what would encourage unity in Nigeria, said: “KACRAN wishes to express sadness on how some of our politicians and religious leaders who are supposed to help towards bringing peace and unity in the country, painfully resort to making utterances that would bring division in the country at this crucial time when we seriously need ardent prayers for peace and unity.
“It is worrisome and disheartening that we have come to a situation where some religious preachers openly tell people not to vote a member of a particular tribe or religion. This is an irritating, divisive message that can lead the people of the other religions feel hated and unwanted. This in the end will lead to more disunity and disenchantment, and this is dangerous for our national unity.”
He said KACRAN objected and strongly condemned religious and tribal based campaign and messages of that nature by any politician or religious leader, emphasising that Nigerian politics should not be ethnocentric or faith based. He noted that in the entire country, you will never see a mosque, church or any other place of worship named after a political party.
