https://www.pillarcatholic.com/nige...lamic-clerics-call-all-muslim-ticket-a-jihad/
Nigeria’s Christian leaders are calling for both full engagement in the country’s democratic process, and faith in the viability of the country’s future, ahead of elections scheduled for Feb. 25, after Islamic religious leaders have backed an all-Muslim presidential ticket on religious grounds.
The country’s upcoming election took on religious significance after the governing All Progressive Congress party decided to field an all-Muslim ticket for president and vice president, in a departure from the country’s customary electoral practice, which sees parties pairing a Muslim and a Christian.
The APC ticket has drawn support from prominent Islamic clerics in Nigeria, who have called on the country’s Muslims to vote along religious lines, fueling national tensions amid an ongoing series of mass attacks on Christian communities.
In January, clerics and representatives from over 75 Islamic groups from several Nigerian states and including both ethnically Yoruba and Igbo Muslims, held a special prayer conference in Kano, Northwest Nigeria, where they prayed for the success of Bola Tinubu’s candidacy, and encouraged the country’s Muslims to see the election in religious terms.
The host of the Kano conference, state governor Abdullahi Ganduje, Governor of Kano State, recalled to the assembly the contentious 1993 election — the last time an all-Muslim party ticket ran for office but saw the election victory overturned by the courts — and said “History will not repeat itself and there will be no annulment this time around.”
Outlining the purpose of the Kano gathering, the conference’s convener, Nigerian Islamic preacher, Dr. Abdullmudalib Muhammad Auwal said that “The participants are Muslims and Islamic clerics. We gathered Muslims from all persuasions to enlighten them on ensuring that the Muslim-Muslim ticket succeeds.”
According to Auwal, over 75 Islamic groups from across the country’s states and ethnic groups Muslims were invited to attend. “We told the Islamic clerics [and] participants that the issue [for the election] is not about building infrastructure for the nation, but the major issue is who will promote Islam.”
“We told the participants that a Muslim, wherever he is, is better than a Kafiri [unbeliever] or non-Muslim, and if you bring 2 Muslims together [on the ticket], they will give you the victory that one Muslim will not be able to give,” Auwal said. “This is the reason why we are enlightening people to understand that the main objective is that Muslim-Muslim ticket is a jihad to us.”…
Bishop David Ajang of Lafia, the liaison bishop in charge of communications at the Catholic Secretariat of Nigeria (CSN) added to Kukah’s comments, saying that the APC ticket was more than just “a departure from what has become like a standard practice in Nigeria.”
“Considering the fact that the country is struggling with religious intolerance and the insinuation of Islamization, at this point in time, all efforts from all quarters should be geared towards building the unity of the country of which balanced representation is key,” Ajang said. “Unfortunately, the APC acted differently.”
“It would seem as if not very many Muslims are willing to accept the fact that Nigeria is a secular state,” Ajang said. “They see the idea as conflicting with their faith, which preaches that the non-Muslim be either converted or conquered. The move will further threaten the peace and stability of the country which is already greatly challenged.”
“Considering the Islamic principle of ‘convert or conquer,’” Ajang said that he sees the wider Muslim backing of the ACP ticket on religious grounds “as a subtle nod in the direction of theocratic jihadism.”…
Nigeria’s Christian leaders are calling for both full engagement in the country’s democratic process, and faith in the viability of the country’s future, ahead of elections scheduled for Feb. 25, after Islamic religious leaders have backed an all-Muslim presidential ticket on religious grounds.
The country’s upcoming election took on religious significance after the governing All Progressive Congress party decided to field an all-Muslim ticket for president and vice president, in a departure from the country’s customary electoral practice, which sees parties pairing a Muslim and a Christian.
The APC ticket has drawn support from prominent Islamic clerics in Nigeria, who have called on the country’s Muslims to vote along religious lines, fueling national tensions amid an ongoing series of mass attacks on Christian communities.
In January, clerics and representatives from over 75 Islamic groups from several Nigerian states and including both ethnically Yoruba and Igbo Muslims, held a special prayer conference in Kano, Northwest Nigeria, where they prayed for the success of Bola Tinubu’s candidacy, and encouraged the country’s Muslims to see the election in religious terms.
The host of the Kano conference, state governor Abdullahi Ganduje, Governor of Kano State, recalled to the assembly the contentious 1993 election — the last time an all-Muslim party ticket ran for office but saw the election victory overturned by the courts — and said “History will not repeat itself and there will be no annulment this time around.”
Outlining the purpose of the Kano gathering, the conference’s convener, Nigerian Islamic preacher, Dr. Abdullmudalib Muhammad Auwal said that “The participants are Muslims and Islamic clerics. We gathered Muslims from all persuasions to enlighten them on ensuring that the Muslim-Muslim ticket succeeds.”
According to Auwal, over 75 Islamic groups from across the country’s states and ethnic groups Muslims were invited to attend. “We told the Islamic clerics [and] participants that the issue [for the election] is not about building infrastructure for the nation, but the major issue is who will promote Islam.”
“We told the participants that a Muslim, wherever he is, is better than a Kafiri [unbeliever] or non-Muslim, and if you bring 2 Muslims together [on the ticket], they will give you the victory that one Muslim will not be able to give,” Auwal said. “This is the reason why we are enlightening people to understand that the main objective is that Muslim-Muslim ticket is a jihad to us.”…
Bishop David Ajang of Lafia, the liaison bishop in charge of communications at the Catholic Secretariat of Nigeria (CSN) added to Kukah’s comments, saying that the APC ticket was more than just “a departure from what has become like a standard practice in Nigeria.”
“Considering the fact that the country is struggling with religious intolerance and the insinuation of Islamization, at this point in time, all efforts from all quarters should be geared towards building the unity of the country of which balanced representation is key,” Ajang said. “Unfortunately, the APC acted differently.”
“It would seem as if not very many Muslims are willing to accept the fact that Nigeria is a secular state,” Ajang said. “They see the idea as conflicting with their faith, which preaches that the non-Muslim be either converted or conquered. The move will further threaten the peace and stability of the country which is already greatly challenged.”
“Considering the Islamic principle of ‘convert or conquer,’” Ajang said that he sees the wider Muslim backing of the ACP ticket on religious grounds “as a subtle nod in the direction of theocratic jihadism.”…
