The All Progressives Congress National Chairman, Senator Abdullahi Adamu, has defended the party’s Muslim-Muslim ticket.
Adamu, in an interview with Arise TV, stated that the party picked the best combination of aspirants that would take it to its destination.
The APC Presidential candidate, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, had two weeks ago, picked a former Governor of Borno State, Senator Kashim Shettima, a fellow Muslim, as his running mate.
Groups including the Christian Association of Nigeria, had faulted the party and its candidate.
Commenting on the issue, Adamu stated, “Ordinarily, I respect the views of people and the politics of people. I cannot for any reason tell you that I don’t care what anybody feels; I do care. But this is Nigeria for you and me. We are inhabited by Christians and Muslims, and we are involved in multi-party politics in Nigeria, and every party in its own value judgment would place on the platform the candidates they feel best can win election. It’s as simple as that.
“This is politics. Whether you are Muslim or Christian, you know that God Himself does not act in vain. The Bible says it, the Quran says it and our Hadith says so. Our position regarding what you are talking about cannot be any different. We are human beings and we do things to the limit of our understanding and wishes and try to work to get to the desired destination with the combination of the aspirants that we have,” he said.
The APC chairman was then asked if the party’s decision to settle for a Muslim-Muslim ticket was because it found no Christian competent enough to be on its presidential ticket.
He replied,
“I respect the views of my Christian brothers and sisters. No doubt about it. I’ll be extremely insensitive not to be accommodating on that. But the fact of the matter is we have a platform called the APC, and when the APC speaks, mine is to lay it along the direction.”
“I will never say that the Christian vote doesn’t matter,” said Adamu when asked if his party’s decision to field a Muslim-Muslim ticket was because Christian votes didn’t matter. “That will be the last thing I will say in my life in politics,” he added.
Asked if non-Muslims will be pleased with the party’s ticket, the Senator said, “The fact of the matter is, in anything you do in this world, somebody wins and somebody loses.”
