Reject politicians who are insensitive to faith inclusion - NOSCEF

The Northern States Christian Elders Forum (NOSCEF) said that Nigerians must use the 2023 elections to make a same-faith ticket unappealing to politicians.

The All Progressives Congress (APC) presented presidential and vice-presidential candidates of the same faith ahead of the polls.

Bola Tinubu, the APC’s standard bearer, is a Muslim from the south-west, while Kashim Shettima, his running mate, is a Muslim from the north-east.

The APC’s Muslim-Muslim ticket has been condemned by organizations such as the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN).

Ejoga Inalegwu, chairman of NOSCEF, asked “lovers of united” Nigeria to reject politicians who are insensitive to faith inclusion in the country during a congress in Kaduna on Saturday.

According to Inalegwu, Christians must use the 2023 elections to “kill” the idea of a single-faith ticket and render it irrelevant in future elections.

“Unpatriotic politicians will use any formula they can apply to win elections, whether it hurts or not and promise to placate as APC is doing after all the pleas,” he said.

“They will discard any formula that makes them lose elections in the future.

“Make the single-faith ticket unattractive for the future, by killing it now or render yourselves forever an irrelevant commodity in the election equation for the future.

“People easily persuaded by personal and selfish gains to the destruction of the body will be a Judas to the Christendom.

“Let us be men and women of principles and loyalty to God.

“We enjoin all lovers of Nigeria across faith to reject the single faith ticket to frustrate politics of exclusion that is mindful of regional balance but insensitive to faith inclusion.”

According to Josiah Onaolapo, a guest speaker at the congress, the 2023 election will be a litmus test for northern Christians’ political viability.

“We must mobilise our people to vote in 2023 as if our lives depend on it,” he said.

“If you allow the door to close against northern Christians, the door will be closed forever.

“There is no state in the north that does not have about 30 percent of Christians including Sokoto and Zamfara states.”