Former Secretary General of the Arewa Consultative Forum, ACF, Mr. Anthony Sani has chided the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, Presidential candidate, Bola Tinubu for picking former Borno state governor, Kashim Shettima as his running mate in the 2023 general election.
Sani premised his position on what he called the religious sensitivity of Nigerians at a time many are calling for inclusiveness in the task of nation building.
According to him, “the challenges posed by Muslim-Muslim ticket is not so much about winning the elections but about the aftermath of governance in an era some notable Nigerians have alleged Islamization agenda against APC government however misguided.
“This is because a Muslim-Muslim ticket will provide such persons with more ammunition against the APC government, more so that it will run against the promise by the APC candidate that he will unite the country by making Nigeria feel great again with promise of glory days ahead.”
Sani further noted that a Muslim-Christian ticket is what Tinubu should have settled for in the interest of those who fear religious domination in one form or the other.
He continued: “I had hoped a Muslim-Christian ticket would be more expedient, considering that such a ticket will not scare the Muslim North due to the electoral value of Christians who control only three states out of nineteen Northern states and at the same time, appease the South which is predominantly Christians.
“If the APC prevails in the elections with Muslim- Muslim ticket, I hope the regime will be mindful of the challenges and go as far as efforts can go to dispel the misconceptions through good governance in order to render such politics of identity superfluous.”
