APC northern Christians leaders meet with IBB and Abdulsalam as they weigh up their options

OPPOSITION to the All Progressives Congress (APC) decision to field a Muslim-Muslim ticket in next year's presidential election continues to grow with northern Christian leaders meeting ex-military leaders Ibrahim Babangida and Abdusalam Abubakar over the matter.

In June, former Lagos State governor Asiwaju Bola Tinubu emerged as the APC presidential candidate after coasting home in a landslide victory following the party's convention in Abuja. Following his victory, he laboured to select a running mate after publicly declaring that he will pick a Christian from the northeast geo-political zone as his deputy but the process appeared fraught with difficulty.

In early July, however, after weeks of prevarication, Asiwaju Tinubu, himself a Muslim, ended up selecting a fellow Muslim in former Borno State governor Senator Kashim Shettima. His choice has polarised the country as the Christian faithful feel highly marginalised and already, several senior party members have left the APC over the matter.

Earlier this week, two prominent northern Christians former speaker of the House of Representatives Hon Yakubu Dogara, and immediate past secretary to the government of the federation, Babachir Lawal, met with former military heads of state Generals Babangida and Abdulsalam in the Niger State capital Minna. Accompanied by the former deputy governor of Kogi State, Simon Achuba, they met separately with the two former military leaders on Monday.

Although sources close to the politicians said they were in Minna to felicitate with General Babangida on the occasion of his 81st birthday, it was gathered that it also served as a forum to consult on the controversial APC Muslims-Muslim ticket. Inside sources said Messrs Babachir and Dogara and other northern Christian leaders in the APC were consulting before taking a decision on which of the presidential candidates to adopt and support ahead of the 2023 general elections.

They  recently convened a submit of the APC Northern Christian Forum in Abuja where representatives and delegates from the 19 northern states and the Federal Capital Territory vehemently rejected the Muslim-Muslim ticket. It is believed northern Christians are now looking at other candidates, including Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party, Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso of the New Nigeria People’s Party and Peter Obi of the Labour Party.