Former Governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El-Rufai, said the election of President Bola Tinubu has, within weeks, taught religious and ethnic bigots vital lessons.
Mr El-Rufai said President Tinubu has silenced his critics with fairness following his recent appointments.
The former governor said this at the book launch and retirement event in honour of Ishaq Akintola, a professor and founder of Muslim Rights Concerns (MURIC) in Lagos State on Saturday.
Mr El-Rufai was the keynote speaker at the event. He spoke on ‘Northern-Southern Interdependence and Integration in National Politics’ and thoughts on political stability, nation-building, and progressive transformation.
“President Tinubu has shown so far that Nigerians should elect tried and tested problem-solvers of whatever religious, ethnic and regional description for righteousness to pervade our nation,” the former governor said.
Mr El-Rufai was speaking on the backdrop of the criticism faced by the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) for presenting a Muslim candidate (Mr Tinubu) and a Muslim running mate (Kashim Shettima) during the just concluded presidential election.
He added that the election of Mr Tinubu as the president of Nigeria is an opportunity to destroy many myths hitherto held by some religious and ethnic bigots.
“First, (the election) has ended the widely-held narrative in the South that the so-called Northern Oligarchy will hold on to power at all costs, disregard any commitments and deceive any political partners.
“Second, Tinubu’s ascendance and Peter Obi’s rejection to third place in the 2023 election demystified fake polls and ethnic pundits and fully demolished the falsehood that Christianisation of any national political contest by campaigning in churches and tribal enclaves will lead to electoral success.
“Third, it has restored the long-held belief that Northern politicians are trusted to keep their words and stand for fairness to all Nigeria, whether written or not.
“Fourthly, the myth that the elected president of Nigeria from the South must be a Christian, which effectively disenfranchises all Muslims from the South-West, South-East and South-South has been conclusively settled,” Mr El-Rufai said.
Silencing opposition with fairness
The former governor said the much-derided and opposed Tinubu-Shettima APC ticket not only won the presidential elections but has shown within weeks that the Muslim-Muslim presidency is capable of being fair to everyone – Muslim and non-Muslim alike.
“I am not surprised that those that opposed President Tinubu’s presidential aspiration on grounds of being a Muslim, and/or because of the choice of his running mate, have gone totally silent and failed to commend him for appointing many more non-Muslims into his government than they expected so far!
“President Tinubu’s victory has not only silenced the once-loud Christian bigots of CAN, but his few weeks of governance, policy decisions and the diversity of political appointments has confirmed that he will not be unfair to any ethnic, religious or regional identity.
“After he won the 2023 election, Mr Tinubu has surprised all the pessimists by starting on a sound footing, guided by true Islamic principles of leadership – putting Nigeria first by appointing generally competent people with minimal regard to region or religion. That is what fairness and justice demand, Mr El-Rufai added.
A new political template emerged
Mr El-Rufai said the 2023 presidential election led to the rise of a new political template that will give Nigerians the policy continuity for sustainable development.
“Our people overwhelmingly voted for Mr Tinubu and across the North preferred him over a Northerner and Muslim – Atiku Abubakar – giving him nearly 64% of the total for the plurality of votes and 25% in virtually all the states.
“It is my humble view that this North-South electoral interdependency and political integration is a successful template for national politics and economics that will provide Nigerians with the policy continuity, political stability and pragmatic leadership needed to propel Nigeria to the attainment of its manifest destiny of being the leader of the Black Race, he added.
He said that he believed every patriotic Nigerian and concerned African should key into and support this new political ideal.
Keep religion private and be tolerant
Mr El-Rufai said people should keep religion private and away from public discourse. He said people should not make religion a tool in politics as it is bad for the country.
“In my view, the intrusion of religion and region into the public sphere in Nigeria, and their subsequent over-politicisation is bad news for the country. It is divisive, costly and not conducive to national cohesion, unity and progress.
“Parts of northern Nigeria have, since the late 1980s, witnessed at great cost the worst manifestations of the divisions and conflict that the apparent obsession with religion promotes. In the North, we look at the absence of these religious and ethnic divides manifesting in communal violence and killings with admiration. I urge you to remain the tolerant society you have always been.
“Therefore, I am convinced that religion and region should retreat to the private sphere where it properly belongs. Region and religion should be deployed to unite, promote equity and justice and engender human progress,” Mr El-Rufai said.
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