Former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Babachir Lawal has described the decision of the All Progressives Congress Presidential Candidate Bola Ahmed Tinubu to fly a Muslim-Muslim ticket as “a disastrous error”.
The former SGF in a statement said he had always known of Tinubu’s consuming passion to succeed Buhari as President of Nigeria but has over the years expressed his reservations about that ambition especially with the contentious Muslim-Muslim ticket.
The statement noted that Tinubu may have been cornered by “self-serving, hero-worshiping sycophants and lapdogs” who may have advised the former Lagos State Governor to toe this disastrous path. He asked that the All Progressives Congress Presidential Candidate rescinds his decision or face humiliating defeat in the 2023 general elections.
Babachir Lawal who referred to Tinubu as his very good friend explained that the APC Presidential Candidate’s action shows that he has over the years abandoned his political think-tanks and strategic planners and associated himself with “religious bigots sycophants, morbid tribalists and political jobbers” who are most times averse to the application of diabolical means.
The SGF expressed disappointment with Tinubu and the APC for “Expecting Nigerians to ignore this crass insensitivity to the country’s diversity which amounts to acceding to the perpetuation of very grave injustice and discrimination against a huge segment of the society”. He added that “no one who seeks to be President of Nigeria should deploy the tool of religious extremism and exclusivism as a tool to win elections”.
On the choice of Kasshim Shetimma, Babachir Lawal described the APC Vice Presidential Candidate as an “overambitious man who has a Machiavellian bent and has lots of money with which to procure a preferred-candidate status among Tinubu’s lapdogs which include even some Christian communities who are helping to launder his no-so-good image”
Lawal who outlined APC’s current leadership structure as Muslim dominated cautioned Tinubu against allowing himself to be turned into a religious bigot; a decision he said would see a revolt from Christian dominated areas across the country and leave the North with no option than to vote the PDP Presidential Candidate, Atiku Abubakar.
He called on President Muhammadu Buhari and the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, Abdullahi Adamu to prevail on Tinubu to rescind his decision as the Christian community will never vote a Muslim-Muslim ticket at this time in Nigeria’s history.
(Editor: Paul Akhagbemhe)
