The former governor of Oyo state and Otun Olubadan of Ibadan land, Senator Rashidi Ladoja, says there is nothing wrong with a Muslim-Muslim ticket for the 2023 presidential election.
Speaking on Saturday in Ibadan, Oyo state capital, Ladoja said religion should not be the basis for electing leaders.
Over the past few weeks, there has been a national conversation about the religious background of the presidential candidates and their intended running mates.
The two major political parties — All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) — have Muslim presidential candidates, and many stakeholders, including the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), have asked that their running mates be Christians.
While Atiku Abubakar, the PDP flagbearer, selected Ifeanyi Okowa — a Christian — as his running mate, there are speculations that Bola Tinubu, the APC standard-bearer, will opt for a fellow Muslim as his VP pick.
Abdullahi Ganduje, Kano governor, on Friday, said Tinubu had agreed to pick a Muslim as running mate.
“A Muslim-Muslim ticket is a reality. It is not something new in Nigeria,” Ganduje had said.
Sharing his opinion on the development shortly after Eid prayers, Ladoja said: “I don’t see anything wrong in Muslim-Muslim ticket, because I don’t intervene in the religion matters. Muslims and Christians are from the same father, Abraham is known as Ibrahim in Islam.
“Some people are following Ismail, while some are following Isaac, who are siblings. So, what is now my own to be fighting for one among them.
“Even, I don’t have time to fight with the traditionalists. It is only God that knows His servants; so, why must we fight over religion.”
The former governor noted that the killings in some parts of the country heightened mistrust among different religions.
“But, when gunmen started attacking churches and kidnapping clerics in Christendom, people started doubting their fellow brothers who belong to another religion,” he said.
Ladoja added: “There are many factors involved in electing a president. Whoever wants to be president and those working for him have to work very hard. In fact, they will need more prayers as they are consulting. With all these efforts, God has the final say on who becomes president. Chief MKO Abiola who was a Muslim was elected along with his vice, also a Muslim.
“We only pray that if Tinubu wins, it would not turn out like that of the late MKO Abiola”.
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