Presidential Running Mate: Nigerians Warn On Dangers Of Ignoring Religious Sentiments

Political analysts and stakeholders have continued to state the kind of running mate the two leading political parties in the country must choose in order to douse religious tension and create peace and unity in the country.

Speaking with THE WHISTLER during the weekend, they added their voices to the dominant discussion in Nigerian political landscape since the emergence of Atiku Abubakar of the People’s Democratic Party and Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress as candidates.

First to raise the alarm of Christian/Christian or Muslim/Muslim ticket is the former Secretary to the Government of the Federation in the government of Muhammad Buhari, Babachir Lawal who said, “I have lived among the Christians and I know that among the Christians, the question of a Muslim-Muslim ticket is a no-go area.”

Lawal declared that, “It is dead on arrival. Buhari himself, even at that time, had to drop this present presidential candidate (Tinubu) because of the tension of a Muslim-Muslim ticket. And we have not seen anything in the country that has changed significantly to allow that to happen.

“On the contrary, it has worsened. The religious divide has increased. Tribal divisions have increased. Regional divisions have increased. So, it would be a good thing if APC would settle for a Muslim-Christian ticket because we know (that the) PDP, that is what they would do.”

To Kaduna State governor, Nasir el-Rufai, mono-religious ticket is never an issue rather it’s deliverables. He explained that, “It was Pastor Tunde Bakare, a pentecostal pastor, who took me to CPC, not President Muhammadu Buhari. I’m very close to Pastor Bakare. I’m very close to many Christians. I don’t think the business of governance has to do with religion. I think we should look for the best person for the job. The person who will get the job done.

“I’m the wrong person to ask that question because in my state I picked a very competent and qualified woman as my running mate in the 2019 elections. But just because she happens to be a Muslim, people were calling it Muslim-Muslim ticket and they said we are going to lose. We didn’t. We won overwhelmingly.”

Joining his voice to the conversation, the former Special Assistant to President Goodluck Jonathan on New Media, Reno Omokri, agreed with el-Rufai, citing as an example the combination of the former Head of State, Gen Yakubu Gowon and Vice-Admiral Joseph Edet Wey, who were both Christians yet were loved by the core North.

Omokri said, “Unknown to many Nigerians both Gowon and his vice (Admiral Wey) are Christians. Yet, they were loved in the core Muslim North, because they provided peace, security and progress. They proved that if Nigerians see a performing government, they will forget religion!

“Having a Muslim-Christian ticket does not balance Nigeria. The government we have now is Muslim-Christian. Look at how imbalanced Nigeria is. Did Osinbajo represent or protect Christians well? What Nigeria needs is a reliable government, not a religious government!”

But Alphonsus Ijakoki, former councillor and now lecturer at Federal University of Lafia, disagreed with Omokri whike agreeing with Lawal that the religious tension in the country calls for care and caution.

While agreeing that what the president and his vice will deliver is key, he earned that, “Such a combination will lead to failure and clear defeat before the election begins.

“There are intelligent and qualified northerners who are Christians that can act as vice while there are qualified and smart southern Christians who can be vice. I wonder why it’s an issue for discussion,” he said.

On the quality of the Vice he said, “Nigeria needs a vice with capacity for deliverables. A unifier, a humble, smart, intelligent and someone with brilliant economic management acumen to be vice. We have them both north and south, Christians and Muslims.”

In the view of a constitutional lawyer, Thompson Agada, the constitution is silent on the religious status of a running mate, adding that it’s a combination of factors for consideration that produce a running mate.

He pointed out that, “The candidate is at liberty to have the final say but must consider key constant and variable factors. The constant factors are religious belief to negate single religion producing both the president and his vice in a toxic religious clime like ours.

“He must check the geopolitical zone, which must be different from his. That’s another constant factor. Also, he must belong to his party from when he’s chosen.”

He said the variables are the education, experience, managerial skill, political strength among others.

“In Nigeria, we have good people who can be President and Vice across all the geopolitical zones and religions. Also, it capable of disunifying the country to produce both the president and vice from one party. In fact, the ticket risks being defeated from the word go.”

A senior lecturer, University of Lagos in the Department of Political Science, Dr Ricky Akhaze told THE WHISTLER that any move for a Muslim/Muslim ticket will Stoke religious tension and cause disaffection that will lead to defeat of the ticket.

“You don’t try that here in Nigeria. We are not at that stage yet so it will be a grave error for any ticket to be one religion,” he warned.

He said there are capable hands to chose from and advised that everyone should thread with caution especially “now that there are accusations of one religion dominating the other.”