A Socio-political group has highlighted the dangers that Muslim-Muslim or Christian-Christian ticket would display ahead of the 2023 presidential election.
The group which has been identified as the Save Nigeria Democracy, in a statement signed by its spokesperson, Jayekuti Oluwadamilare, on Saturday in Lokoja, the Kogi State capital, said such a move by any political party spells doom for Nigeria’s nascent democracy.
Oluwadamilare emphasised that, if the speculation is true, a Muslim-Muslim or Christian-Christian ticket would do more harm than good to the already frayed inter-religious relationship and coexistence of Nigerians.
Read Also: Muslim-Muslim Ticket: CAN Sends Fresh Warning To Parties
According to him, such move will sentence Nigeria’s democracy to death and will be waiting for its hangman rope for its funeral to be celebrated by enemies of democracy.
The statement reads in part, “The argument in certain quarters is that the then Social Democratic Party (SDP) fielded the duo of Moshood Abiola and Bashir Tofa in a Muslim-Muslim Presidential ticket which scaled through with wide acceptance from adherents of Islam and Christianity. It is however worthy of note that the situation and inter-religious climate of 1993 is quite different from what obtains presently.
“The current atmosphere of religious disharmony, mutual suspicion, and animosity should be taken into serious cognizance by politicians and political parties to avoid taking decisions that can further heat up the already tensed polity.
“In the interest of religious harmony, fairness, and the need to give a sense of belonging and justice to both Muslims and Christians in Nigeria, all political parties should as a matter of principle refrain from nursing any idea that suggests fielding a Presidential candidate and running mate of the same faith or religion.
“Religion is one of the most sensitive issues in Nigeria, with adherents of Islam and Christianity virtually accusing each other of political domination at the expense of the other. This is why we must be very careful not to further fan the ember of religious discord and animosity. As of today, most families in Nigeria have both Muslims and Christians.
“The only thing that would bring about inter-religous unity, peace and harmonious relationship in this country is for the political parties to be sensitive to matters concerning religion by ensuring that candidates and their running mates from opposite religion emerges.”