The choice of Senator Kashim Shettima, a fellow Muslim from Northern Nigeria, as the vice presidential candidate by Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the presidential candidate of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), is still felt throughout the nation. This is especially true for several APC Northern Christian Leaders who had assumed that in the interests of national balance and federal character, one of them would be chosen for the vice-presidential position.
In Nigeria, it is accepted practice that when a candidate for president hails from the North, the vice president will be from the South. In addition, a Christian would run for vice president if the president were a Muslim.
Only the ruling APC is participating in the election, despite there being 18 political parties registered for the 2023 presidential election, demonstrating that this has become the standard.
with a presidential ticket of the same faith. Many Northern Christian leaders are not pleased with the APC presidential candidate’s choice. The former speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Yakubu Dogara, and former secretary to the government of the federation (SGF), Babachir Lawal, are two of the most vocal opponents of this. The pair is in charge of the APC faction known as Northern Christian Leaders, who are opposed to Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the party’s presidential nominee, being elected as the leader of Nigeria in 2023.
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Recently, this group declared that they were seeking for a another presidential candidate to back. Atiku Abubakar of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Peter Obi of the Labor Party (LP), and Rabiu Kwankwaso of the New Nigeria People’s Party are some of the alternatives (NNPP).
Others include Imumolen Christopher of the Accord Party (AP), Al-Mustapha Hamza of the Action Alliance (AA), Sowore Omoyele of the African Action Congress (AAC), Kachikwu Dumebi of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Sani Yabagi Yusuf of the Action Democratic Party (ADP), Umeadi Peter Nnanna of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Ojei Princess Chichi of the Allied People’ (ZLP).
The field of candidates has already been reduced to Atiku Abubakar, Peter Obi, and Rabiu Kwankwaso, who represent the PDP, LP, and NNPP respectively.
The Middle Belt Forum, a largely Christian organization in Northern Nigeria including members from Babachir Lawal’s and Yakubu Dogara’s home states of Adamawa and Bauchi, has chosen Peter Obi as their favored presidential candidate.
The Federal Capital Territory, Southern Kaduna, Southern Bauchi, Southern Kebbi, Southern Gombe, Southern Yobe State, and Southern Borno are all states in Nigeria that are generally referred to as being part of the Middle Belt. Other states that are considered to be part of the Middle Belt include Southern Kaduna, Southern Bauchi, Southern Kebbi, Southern Gombe, Southern Yobe State, and Southern Borno. For instance, Dr. Pogu Bitrus, the Forum’s chairman, is from Borno State.
The forum also stated that it was supporting Obi’s campaign because it believed in “fairness, equity, and justice.”
This information was provided by Dr. Pogu Bitrus, chairman of the Forum and middle belt convener for OBIDATTI 2023, during the announcement of Peter Obi and Yusuf Datti as their candidates for the 2023 presidential election at the Rwang Pam Township Stadium in Jos, the capital of the Plateau State. “We are here to inform Nigerians that the Middle Belt completely supports Peter Obi for the president in 2023,” Bitrus added. We didn’t just come to this conclusion out of sentiment; rather, it was the result of careful deliberation with the Ohanaeze Ndigbo, the Afenifere, and the Niger Delta Forum, among other sociocultural organizations in Nigeria.
However, in an effort to oppose the Muslim-Muslim presidential ticket of the APC, the Northern Christian Leaders in the party have decided to collaborate with their Northern Muslim counterparts to support one of the candidates.
A statement that former Sokoto State deputy governor and minister of water resources Mukhari Shagari and Yakubu Dogara jointly signed expressed their resolution. The communique was the result of a consultation between Northern Muslim political leaders and Northern APC Christian leaders that took place on Saturday, October 8, 2022 at
Abuja’s NAF Conference Center is in Kado.
The meeting was in accordance with the communique from the APC Northern Christian leaders published on July 29, 2022, which asked for an agreement between it and Muslim brothers and sisters throughout the Federal Capital Territory and the 19 Northern States (FCT). “We have committed to work together with a view to encouraging unity, peace, and national cohesion,” it was decided at the conclusion of the meeting. The group also decided, according to the communiqué, “to collaborate and jointly develop a pan-Nigerian political platform that will foster harmony, inclusivity, and a sense of belonging among the Nigerian populace.
It’s interesting to note that Mukhari Shagari, one of the communique’s signatories, is a senior member of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), who recently disclosed that he turned down the opportunity to support Mr. Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), as his running mate. According to him, Peter Obi cannot win the presidential election, hence he declined the opportunity to be his running mate.
In his appearance on Politics Today on Channels Television, Shagari stated that the Labour Party candidate had little chance of winning the upcoming elections. Does that imply that the Northern Christians in the APC have embraced Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, the PDP presidential candidate? The communication did not specify the answer, therefore it is still up in the air.
These APC leaders include Northern Christians who are also led by the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), which not only opposed the APC’s same-faith ticket but also established requirements for candidates to meet in order to be eligible for the Christian vote in 2023.
All churches in Nigeria were ordered by CAN in July to urge their people to vote against presidential candidates who had previously been associated with illicit substances, Boko Haram, corruption, or any other violent religious organizations. This information was provided in a circular that was distributed to all churches in Nigeria and came from the Political and Strategy Committee of CAN.
The qualifications that a presidential candidate must have and the policies that should be adopted or rejected were listed in CAN’s circular, “2023 General Elections; Whom To Vote For.” Honesty, candor, respect for the law, respect for religious and racial diversity, compassion, discipline, and trustworthiness are among the traits CAN claimed Christians should seek for in a candidate. The organization stipulated that the candidate could not be a cult member or have any connection to Boko Haram, witchcraft, narcotics, or any other violent religious organization. According to CAN, the candidate must have excelled in previous roles, had a good education sufficient to handle a complex society, and possess efficient management abilities for both natural and human resources.
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When the resentful Northern Christian Leaders in the APC present their preferred presidential candidate following their nationwide consultations, which will undoubtedly cause a lot of commotion, all eyes will be on them.
