The Northern Nigeria’s Front for Equity and Good Governance has kicked against permutations by the All Progressives Congress (APC) for a Muslim-Muslim ticket in the upcoming 2023 presidential election.
The group has endorsed the Chairman, Northern Governors’ Forum and Plateau State Governor, Simon Lalong, as the running mate of Tinubu.
Zakariya Abdul’aziz, the Leader of the Group while addressing newsmen in Kaduna on Friday, stated that religion has never been the voting pattern of the North.
He added that voting pattern of the north has been nationalistic without regard to “sectional, ethnic and religious considerations.”
Abdulaziz stated that it is not true that only a Muslim-Muslim ticket could guarantee victory for the APC in the upcoming election.
In his words, “For instance, in 1979, Northerners across the North voted for the late Alhaji Shehu Shagari without divisive considerations. During the 1993 aborted elections, the North again voted dispassionately with the late MKO Abiola and Babagana Kingibe as winners.
“In the same vein, in 1999, the two major candidates were equally massively voted for in the North despite their being Yoruba, Christians and Southerners. This unique pattern ensured the victory of former President Olusegun Obasanjo in 1999 and 2003 as well as former President Goodluck Jonathan in 2011 respectively.
“As a group, we are very concerned and disturbed by the utterances of some few voices that have attempted to push out their narratives (using religion and ethnicity) under the guise of speaking for the North over the choice of political candidates and their running mates.
“In particular, we find it very divisive, careless and callous for some persons to say that the choice of a Christian from the North will not guarantee Northern votes for political parties
“For instance, they have brazenly and openly said that only the choice of a Muslim-Muslim from the the North as running mate to the candidate of the ruling party can guarantee the votes of the North.
“In other words, they are saying that a Muslim-Muslim ticket is the only way to victory for the ruling party. This is misleading and very unfortunate.
“The position is not only incorrect but an attempt to mislead the good choice of the region into thinking that religion or ethnicity is the major determining factor for the voting pattern of the North.
“Again, such very unfortunate voices seem to destroy the foundation of unity, oneness and equity which the founding fathers of the region toiled for.”
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