Shettima: Christians have nothing to fear, Muslim-Muslim ticket reflects Nigeria’s reality, APC chairman Adamu says
Senator Abdullahi Adamu, the national chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), has allayed the fears of Christians over the party’s Muslim-Muslim presidential ticket, saying it was a reflection of the current political reality in the country.
Telescope.ng reports that he, however, reiterated that the Christians have nothing to fear over the choice of Senator Kashim Shettima as running mate to the party’s presidential candidate, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, because the Muslim-Muslim pairing was an act of God.
At the same time, the Ondo state governor, Oluwarotimi Akeredolu, SAN, has allayed concerns over the Muslim-Muslim ticket, saying it has nothing to do with performance since the faith of the vice-president does not affect performance in any government.
This, nonetheless, Kaduna State chapter of the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN), has rejected the Muslim-Muslim presidential combination by the APC, because it would further polarise the country along religious line.
However, addressing journalists after a closed-door meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari in Daura, Katsina state, Adamu said the choice of Shettima as Tinubu’s running mate should not be a subject to agitation by the Christian community.
According to him, nobody was willing to promote a Muslim-Muslim presidential ticket, but the party has to face what he described as the reality of politics in the country in order to win the 2023 presidential poll.
His words: “The fact of the matter is, God doesn’t do anything in vain. God has His reasons for having two major religions to be in this country and each of these groups, has both people who have the reason to believe and they have a take also.
“We had a time when Christians led this country. We have time now when a Muslim is running the country and we can’t deny that fact. We can’t have what we want at a point in time, all of us agreeing to one thing.
“The fact of the matter is we appreciate that, the Christians are interesting, no doubt, about it. We are as practical as we can in this situation and we do hope that people we see reason.
“Nobody is willing to promote Christianity or a Muslim ticket necessarily but we have to face the reality of our politics in this country and that is exactly what we are doing. Christians have nothing to fear. Shettima is another Nigerian like me and you.”
Further, he explained that, “We don’t have to be all Muslims or all Christians. It is the will of God that this time around him (Shettima) is going to be the vice-president of this great country if we win the election. And we do hope and pray and we are working to win the election.”
Adamu, who claimed the APC national working committee, was in Daura to pay Sallah homage to President Buhari and brief him ahead of the Osun governorship election, expressed optimism that the party would win the Osun governorship election and the forthcoming 2023 general election.