By Ochogwu Sunday

Following the Muslim-Muslim presidential ticket by the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, a popular priest of the Catholic Archdiocese of Abuja, Fr. Oluoma Chinenye John, also known as Fada Oluoma, has said that if the party wins in 2023, Muslims would continue in power after Bola Tinubu’s administration.

Recall that APC presidential candidate, Tinubu yesterday announced former Borno State Governor, Kashim Shettima as his running mate.

Consequently, Northern Christians and most Southerners have continued to lambast the ruling party over the choice of a Muslim-Muslim ticket.

Reacting, Fada Oluoma in a statement on his verified Facebook page on Monday, expressed concerns that the move by APC would continue to trigger religious sentiments in the country.

He, however, urged the aggrieved citizens to vote for a better political party in the forthcoming presidential elections, stressing that other candidates were ready to change the status quo.

He wrote, “APC is just one party, we have other parties in Nigeria. One of the beauties of democracy is the availability of options. Crying over APC’s candidates in the midst of other candidates questions our readiness to change the status quo or our capacity to make and accept informed decisions.

“There’s only one major reason behind the Muslim-Muslim ticket by APC; electoral victory. Without a Muslim VP, the APC will lose significant votes from the North and probably lose the entire presidency. This is the fear and the reason for a Muslim VP. Don’t let anyone beguile you to make it a religious problem, if you do, you will keep losing the big picture.

“I’ll never reduce this issue to a religious problem, it’s more of political dexterity. APC chose electoral votes over religious sentiments. Of course, APC knows a number of Christians will be offended, but they still went ahead probably knowing that the mathematics of more votes favour them in this issue more than feelings.

“If you don’t like it, you are right. Crying and bemoaning it? That’s where you and I separate. There’s Labour Party that is driving a political revolution, invest in it, be part of it, preach it and convert others if PDP and APC don’t appeal to you.

“Whether this is a smart move by APC or not depends on voters. If it’s a bad strategy, it’s the APC that should bemoan it, not you an independent voter. Even card-carrying members of a party are not forced to vote for the candidates of their party.

“If APC wins 2023 presidency, Nigeria will be democratically handing over power from one Muslim to another. This means that religious sentiments can be thumped in our quest for a better nation. That also means that kindred sentiments like tribe and region can also be thumped.”