2027; Christians Will Not Support Another Muslim-Muslim Ticket, Niger APC Chieftain Vatsa Tells Tinubu – Calls It an Insult to the Christian Community in Nigeria
From Our Correspondent.
Less than 24 hours after President Bola Ahmed Tinubu announced Vice President Kashim Shettima as his running mate for the 2027 election, Hon. Jonathan Vatsa, a Chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Niger State, reacted to the development, asserting that another Muslim-Muslim ticket will not be acceptable in 2027.
Vatsa firmly stated that repeating the 2023 Muslim-Muslim ticket by President Tinubu and the party is a direct insult to Nigeria’s Christian community. He emphasized, “I think this is a grievous mistake by the APC to have allowed this; it is highly insensitive.”
In a statement issued in Minna on Saturday, the former Commissioner for Information, Culture, and Tourism of the state pointed out that whoever advised the President and the APC to repeat the same Muslim-Muslim ticket for the upcoming elections did not have the country’s best interests in mind. He added, “the situation in 2023 is different from what is on ground right now.”
He also said that the President and the ruling party have damaged their own chances, stating, “with the current situation in the country, and the widespread rumors of Christian genocide in Nigeria, nobody expects the President to repeat this arrangement.”
“Nobody can convince the Christian community in the country to vote for APC in 2027, especially when other political parties field Christian candidates for President and Vice President; it will be a tough sell.”
He further explained, “What this means is that the President and the APC have made the campaign very difficult for the Christian members of the party ahead of the elections. What do you expect us to tell the Christian community— to vote for another Muslim-Muslim ticket?” he queried.
Vatsa, who recently appealed to Niger State Governor Umar Mohammed Bago to consider a Christian as his running mate in 2027, likened the situation with Christians in Nigeria to the biblical saying of “a stone the builder rejected and the building cannot stand without the stone; the builder surely needs the stone.”
Describing a repeat Muslim-Muslim ticket in 2027 as unacceptable, Vatsa said President Tinubu has posed a major challenge to Christians in the country with this choice, stressing that “unless the President has a different plan for winning the election outside of the normal balloting, this decision will have grievous consequences.”
He argued that Christians already feel insecure in Nigeria and would be more comfortable having a Christian Vice President in 2027. He insisted, “as things stand now, they will feel safer where they are protected.”
He also noted that the international community is watching Nigeria’s political developments closely, particularly regarding the faith of Christians in the country. He added, “something needs to be done about this choice.”
“I have nothing against the Vice President or Muslims in general, but I am speaking for fairness, justice, and equity in Nigeria’s political landscape,” he concluded.
