An Ijaw national leader and convener of the Pan Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF),Edwin Clark has criticised Bola Tinubu presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), over his choice of a running mate.
Tinubu had, on Sunday, announced Kashim Shettima, former Borno governor, as his running mate for the 2023 general election.
The APC presidential candidate had said his decision was “in the spirit of 1993” when Nigerians “embraced Chief MKO Abiola and a fellow Muslim running mate”, but the recent development has elicited mixed reactions.
In a statement issued on Monday, Clark made a reference to the comments by Tinubu, wherein the latter had said he lost the vice-presidential slot in 2015 because the APC didn’t want to run with a Muslim-Muslim ticket.
The Ijaw leader stated that the decision by Tinubu doesn’t reflect the secular state of the country, adding that a Muslim-Muslim ticket will promote division.
“I feel threatened for our beloved country because of the way things are going. Nigeria is a multi-ethnic and multi-religious nation, with Christianity and Islam as the major religions, even though Nigeria is a secular state,” he said.
“In compliance with Constitutional provisions of inclusiveness, the number one and number two positions in the country, viz, President and Vice President, have always been occupied by practitioners of the two major religions, to ensure balancing.
“It will be recalled that the Presidential candidate of the All Progressives’ Congress (APC), Alhaji Ahmed Bola Tinubu, could not be chosen in 2015 as Vice President to Muhammadu Buhari, because he is a Muslim and Muhammadu Buhari is a Muslim.
Alhaji Ahmed Bola Tinubu, in his own words, confirmed this in his statement in Abeokuta, Ogun State. What has changed? One quality of a good leader is consistency. A good leader must act in the same way at all times, to all people. He must not display double standard.
“Today, what has the Presidential candidate of the APC, Alhaji Bola Ahmed Tinubu, done? He has picked a person of his religion, a Muslim, as his running-mate. Such choice is not inclusive, it is not good for a secular state like Nigeria.
“There is presently a sharp division in the country, even on religious lines, and all patriots are seeking ways to salvage the situation. Therefore, Alhaji Tinubu’s decision to take a fellow Muslim as his running-mate, will further worsen the situation in the country. He should know that patriotism is a quality of a good leader.
“On the reasons adduced by Alhaji Tinubu on why he chose Kashim Shettima as running mate, is the APC presidential flag bearer telling Nigerians that there are no Christians in the APC from the north who are ‘competent, capable and reliable?”
