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Presidential running mate: Don’t divide Nigeria – Dikwa warns El-Rufai, others

As presidential candidates of the dominant political parties narrow down their search for running mates, Rev. Kallamu Musa Ali Dikwa, the Director-General, Centre for Justice on Religious and Ethnicity in Nigeria has warned against dividing the country with religion.

Speaking to DAILY POST in an exclusive interview, Dikwa lamented the utterances of some Nigerians over who becomes the running mate to the presidential candidates of political parties for the 2023 general elections.

He said, “These days, I have been reading about who will be the running mate to the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress, Bola Ahmed Tinubu in the 2023 general elections. I also observed that all the prominent Muslim politicians, northern Muslim governors, Muslim traditional rulers, with their Islamic scholars, saying that if a Muslim from the north is not picked as running mate, they’re not going to vote for him.”

He noted that it meant that it was planned a long time ago by the core northern Muslims to cause confusion in the country if Muslims do not rule the country as President and Vice President.

According to Rev. Dikwa, Nigerians have come to a time where they would unite themselves irrespective of religion or tribe by carrying every part of the country along towards ensuring a formidable nation.

He said that a Christian/Christian or Muslim/Muslim ticket does not speak well on the sincerity of Nigerians in ensuring fairness to all for the progress and development of the country.

He said that it was counter-productive for a country like Nigeria to still believe that it is only a particular religion that has those that can direct the affairs of the country.

According to him, “It is very unfortunate that some preachers are inciting and brainwashing their followers that they have the capacity in the country to produce a President and Vice President.

“Both the PDP and the APC have their presidential candidates as Muslims. Is it not enough to also see the sportsmanship of Christians to vote without thinking of the two being Muslims?

“We have the VCDs of the preachers and now they’re trying to test the ground to implement the agenda.”

He asked, “Does it mean in the entire North there is no capable Christian that has the ability and technical know-how to effectively be a running mate to any of the presidential candidates except Muslims? I strongly expect the Muslim clerics and politicians from the North to see it as their duty to preach unity of both Christians and Muslims to their fellow brothers and sisters for a unified country.”

He further explained, “Christians must stop being afraid but be bold and take their position in this country politically, financially materially and spiritually.

“Christians also have the capacity of producing a Christian President at any time. We have an evidence book of that in our hands. Comparative religious statistics of the West African Region gives a good indication of the numerical strength of Islam vis-a-vis other religious. A country by country profile of Islam, Christianity and Traditional religion is presented in items of percentages by American-based organization, Patrick Johntone’s Operation World 2001: Muslims 41.00%, Christians 52.61%.”

He added, “Another book written by the Nigerian government agency in 2009, with 27 committee members, entitled “Nigeria Ethnic Value”, gives religious statistics between Muslims, Christians and Traditional Religion: Muslims 41.3%, Christians 43.55%, Traditionalists 5.23%. We have written 2 letters concerning this matter to the National Population Commission to give us the truth about these figures but they didn’t respond to our letters till date.

“I have watched governor Nasiru Ahmed El-Rufai’s interview with Channels TV, and he said during the 2019 elections in Kaduna State, he picked his running mate Muslim/Muslim and won. But Governor El-Rufai is not telling Nigerians the strategy he used on Southern Kaduna people, that he stopped the people of the area from coming out to cast their votes for the candidate of their choice.”

He asked: “Is Governor El-Rufai telling us that the same strategy he used on Southern Kaduna people, they are going to use it during the forthcoming 2023 general elections? To use Fulani terrorists, ISWAP and Ansaru’s Jihadists to destabilize other parts of the country in the forthcoming 2023 general elections, especially in the Christian communities or what? Nigerians must caution governor El-Rufai. Is the Owo Church attack in Ondo State a sign of the plan to send terrorists on Nigerians?”

The Nigerian Army has revealed that 12 officers and 86 soldiers absconded from the frontlines in the aftermath of last week’s Boko Haram attacks on Marte and Dikwa local government areas of Borno State.

This was contained in a memo dated March 1, 2021, from Operation Lafiya Dole Headquarters in Maiduguri.

According to a report by Daily Trust, the soldiers were declared deserters.

It indicated that three majors, three captains, six lieutenants, three sergeants, and 89 soldiers fled in the aftermath of the attacks on Marte and Dikwa.

The signal, signed by Col. A.O. Odubiyi, on behalf of the Theatre Commander of Operation Lafiya Dole, partly read, “I am directed to connect Reference A on above subject and to respectfully forward details of additional officers and soldiers who absconded from the defensive location during the BHT attack on New Marte and Dikwa.

You are requested to declare the named officers and soldiers’ deserters WEF 19 Feb 21. You are also requested to cause HQ NAFC to freeze their accounts and apprehend/bring them under military escort to this Headquarters if seen within your AOR.”

In his remarks, the spokesman of the Nigerian Army, Brig.-Gen. Mohammed Yerima, explained that “If Army has anything to tell the world, shall we wait for the media to prompt us? No! Well, if we have anything to tell the world on that, we will tell the world, we won’t allow you to prompt us.”

Ripples Nigeria had reported that Boko Haram fighters dislodged Nigerian troops in Marte on February 14, prompting the troops to relocate to Dikwa.

The insurgents reportedly foisted their flags at the Marte area after killing seven soldiers of the 153rd Task Force Battalion.

Thereafter, the terrorists waged another war against the troops in Dikwa on February 19 but were repelled.

In response, the Chief of Army Staff, Maj.-Gen. Ibrahim Attahiru went to Dikwa and gave a 48-hour ultimatum to the troops to recapture Marte and other towns which they did.

However, an anonymous military source told Daily Trust that the case of the 101 soldiers that deserted was a source of concern.

“This case should not be seen as mutiny because they went different ways when they were dislodged by the insurgents. It is possible that some of them have been killed; some may have retreated to their main bases and others may be on the run.

“This is not a new thing. It happens when military bases are dislodged,” he said.

Another military source familiar with the recent development said most of the deserters left in protest because the terrorists had superior weapons and not because they didn’t want to continue serving their country.

The fact is that the weapons procured by the federal government between 2013 and 2014 have all worn out while others have been stolen by the terrorists during raids on military bases.

“Also, the terrorists have procured additional weapons from other sources which they are now using to take the war to the doorsteps of our troops.

“The terrorists also believe that they are fighting a religious battle and therefore are ready to fight all the time, confronting the troops with the conviction that they would either win or die. All these factors have collectively dampened the morale of our troops and the federal government must do something to revive it,” he said.