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From Juliana Taiwo-Obalonye, Abuja
A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Babachir Lawal, has declared that the 2023 elections will be all about religion started by the ruling party, insisting that the ruling party will pay heavily for its choice of a Muslim- Muslim ticket.
Lawal spoke at a summit organised on Friday by the APC Northern Christians Leaders’ Summit with the theme, “Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin, a reproach to any people.”
According to Lawal, for the APC, a Muslim-Muslim ticket has been a long-term political strategy and not a one-off decision, stressing that this was a calculated anti-Christian exclusion agenda that is being implemented.
He further stressed that APC, not Christians started the religious politics, vowing that the ruling party should be ready for the consequences of a same-faith ticket in 2023.
According to him, blaming Christians and heaping insults on Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) will not get APC anywhere.
He said: “The PVC and prayers will be our weapon of choice and we will mercifully deploy them in 2023.”
The former SGF said that the agenda of Muslim-Muslim ticket was just unfolding and assuring that Christians will resist it.
Lawal said: “Our opposition has some historical basis. There were times in the past when Christians produced the deputy governors in Kebbi, Niger and Kaduna states. Now it is wholly Muslim-Muslim tickets.
“It is also now a recurring practice in the North whereby any Christian traditional ruler that dies is replaced with a Muslim prince, albeit from the ruling family even if the most qualified and preferred prince is a Christian. The recent case of Billiri Chiefdom in Gombe State is still fresh in our minds.
“So our dear APC colleagues, spare us these sanctimonious lectures on ‘competence’ and the cliché ‘religion of the candidates do not matter.’ The truth is that the 2023 presidential election will be all about religion, and sadly, you started it; religion does matter in this context, so be ready for the consequences.”
Former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, who was the keynote speaker, said the opposition against Muslim-Muslim ticket was not something personal against the candidates of the ruling party but it is all about justice and the unity of Nigeria.
“When we talk about a Muslim-Muslim ticket; God forbid that we should be understood to be objecting to Muslims or that we don’t want Asiwaju Bola Tinubu to be president. It is not about Senator Kashim Shettima either, but about what is right and what is wrong. It is about justice, fairness and equity. It is about Nigeria, its diversity and how it can be harnessed in an inclusive manner for the greater good of all of us. Be that as it may, some of us really wanted Asiwaju to be president because he has sacrificed much for our party, the APC and for what he represents to so many people. So, our position cannot be against Muslims or Islam. That fact cannot be denied in any way.
“In 2015, when we were called “Janjeweed Party”, my response was usually very simple. I could then say that, HE John Oyegun was the chairman of my party and my Vice-Presidential candidate was Pastor Yemi Osinbajo. We don’t enjoy that luxury anymore as the President, Senate President, Speaker and his deputy; Senate and House Leaders; National Chairman and the Deputy National Chairman; Presidential and the Vice-Presidential candidates are all Muslims, leaving the Christians with just the position of VP Osinbajo and Deputy Senate President, Omo-Agege at that level in a country whose population is fairly split between Muslims and Christians.”
