Muslim-Muslim Ticket: Nigerians Haven’t Benefited From Political Leaders’ Religion – Baba-Ahmed

The Spokesperson of the Northern Elders Forum (NEF), Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, has reacted to the speculation that the All Progressives Congress will be fielding a Muslim/Muslim ticket in the 2023 presidential election.

Naija News reports that there have been different reactions to the speculation that the ruling APC may field a Muslim as the running mate of the APC presidential candidate, Bola Tinubu, in the 2023 presidential election.

Some APC chieftains in their reactions have asked Nigerians to ignore the religion of the party’s presidential candidate and his running mate but focus on their competence, while many people and groups such as the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) and the Catholic Church have rejected the plan by the ruling party to field a Muslim/Muslim ticket.

In an interview on Channels Television on Tuesday, Baba-Ahmed said the debate on the religion of the presidential candidates and their intended running mates is unnecessary.

The NEF spokesman claimed that ordinary Nigerians no longer care about the religious background of their political leaders but their competence.

Baba-Ahmed said religion is a tool deployed by politicians to get power in 2023, adding that Nigerians have not benefited from the religious beliefs of elected leaders.

He said: “I think there is a lot of deception here which has gathered momentum as politicians began to learn more and more about the weaknesses of ordinary Nigerians. 90 percent of us as ordinary Nigerians are devout Christians and Muslims. We care very deeply about personal faith. We care about the fortunes of our faith. We don’t like to be attacked or affected because we are Christians or Muslims.

“By and large, in most instances, our faith is faith. Politicians use faith and other forms of identity politics to wrestle for power. This is basically what is it and it is becoming clearer that every time politics come, religion surfaces as a factor and what it does is that it created this idea that Nigerians would fight because the vice-president is not a Christian or a Muslim.

“We won’t. We will not fight because if you go down in history, there is not a single thing a Christian had benefited from during the times when Christians were presidents or vice-presidents. There is nothing a Muslim had benefitted from the president or vice-president being a Muslim.

“When you hear them talk now, it is as if it is central to being a Muslim or a Christian. if your so-called man is not in the presidency. It is nonsense. It is the most deceptive thing politicians do. What is even more damaging is that they are making it worse now precisely the time when we need to have quality leadership, good people irrespective of their faith, who will govern this country and pull it out of this quagmire that we are in.

“Politicians are bringing in all these factors that specifically targeted at giving a few of them certain advantages. Now, you hear these people are saying it has to be a Muslim-Muslim ticket, ordinary Nigerians don’t care. Politicians are playing a game with the faith, intelligence and future of our people.

“I’m telling you ordinary Nigerians do not consider the faith of leaders now as central to the way they exist. We have been taught some terrible lessons from recent leaders who may have benefitted from religious politics but have abandoned the people who they share the same faith with. I think people are wiser now.”