A popular priest of the Catholic Archdiocese of Abuja, Fr. Oluoma Chinenye John, also known as Fada Oluoma, has urged Nigerians to reject the Muslim-Muslim ticket of the ruling APC if they are displeased and instead vote Labour Party which has Peter Obi as its presidential candidate.
He said the multiplicity of political parties and candidates reflects the beauty of democracy, stating that those not happy with PDP and APC can invest in Labour Party which according to him is driving a political revolution.
Recall that APC presidential candidate and former governor of Lagos State, Bola Tinubu had on Sunday announced former Borno State Governor, Kashim Shettima as his running mate.
Both Tinubu and his running mate are Muslims in a multi-religious society like Nigeria. This has however attracted reactions as many Nigerians believe there should be a balancing instead of single-faith ticket which APC has announced.
Reacting to the development, Fada Oluoma in a statement on his verified Facebook page on Monday, expressed concerns that the move by APC would continue to trigger religious sentiments in the country.
He wrote, “APC is just one party, we have other parties in Nigeria. One of the beauties of democracy is the availability of options. تكساس بوكر Crying over APC’s candidates in the midst of other candidates questions our readiness to change the status quo or our capacity to make and accept informed decisions.
“There’s only one major reason behind the Muslim-Muslim ticket by APC; electoral victory. Without a Muslim VP, the APC will lose significant votes from the North and probably lose the entire presidency. This is the fear and the reason for a Muslim VP. Don’t let anyone beguile you to make it a religious problem, if you do, you will keep losing the big picture.
“I’ll never reduce this issue to a religious problem, it’s more of political dexterity. APC chose electoral votes over religious sentiments. كيف تربح في الروليت Of course, APC knows a number of Christians will be offended, but they still went ahead probably knowing that the mathematics of more votes favour them in this issue more than feelings.
“If you don’t like it, you are right. Crying and bemoaning it? That’s where you and I separate. There’s Labour Party that is driving a political revolution, invest in it, be part of it, preach it and convert others if PDP and APC don’t appeal to you.
“Whether this is a smart move by APC or not depends on voters. If it’s a bad strategy, it’s the APC that should bemoan it, not you an independent voter. Even card-carrying members of a party are not forced to vote for the candidates of their party.
“If APC wins 2023 presidency, Nigeria will be democratically handing over power from one Muslim to another. العاب كسب المال This means that religious sentiments can be thumped in our quest for a better nation. That also means that kindred sentiments like tribe and region can also be thumped”.