April 07, (THEWILL) – The All Progressives Congress Stakeholders Forum (APCSF) has appealed to President-elect, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, to consider religious balancing in the appointment of his Chief of Staff.
The group, in a press statement signed by Sanusi Mohammed and Joshua Adewale, Chairman and Secretary respectively, said the President-elect has to be cautious in his appointment of key officials in his government so as not to give room to those who want to tar him with the ink of religious bias.
Weighing in on the religious sensitivity in the country, the stakeholders appealed to the President-elect to take into cognizance, the initial outrage that greeted his choice of a fellow Muslim as running mate and how the opposition parties had tried to exploit that angle to cast the APC presidential ticket as insensitive to the religious diversity of the country, to correct the impression.
The group said fortunately for the President-elect, he does not have to look far as he has a trusted ally that would fit into that position firmly in the person of Hon. James Faleke.
The statement reads in part: “There are disturbing media reports that Asiwaju is testing the waters ahead of appointing another Muslim into the sensitive position of Chief of Staff and this has engendered a feeling of apprehension among non-muslims.
“We are particularly concerned about the well-publicised consideration being given to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila, for the position and we view it as a concocted fable by opposition elements to further alienate the Christian community and deepen the opposition narrative about the exclusion of Christians in the next administration.
“We condemn the promoters of another Muslim as Chief of Staff as another antic of the enemies of Asiwaju to dress him in the borrowed robes of religious extremist meant to drive further, the narrative by the opposition and unwittingly deplete and confuse his Christian supporters, who delivered the critical 25% in their states irrespective of religious propaganda that portrayed them to betrayers in their states.”
The group called on the President-elect to rise like the trusted and patriotic statesman that he is to call the promoters of the exclusion of a particular faith in governance to order.
The APCSF observed that among the President-elect’s loyal and trusted allies is Hon. Faleke, who has displayed uncommon faith, loyalty and uncommon belief in the unity of Nigeria.
“Faleke, a Christian from North Central, had stood firm to faith and possesses the institutional memory to guard against the exploitation of religion and has the capacity to restore confidence in your administration and to project Your Excellency as the President for all, as you take oath as President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, come May 29,” the group said.
AYO ESAN, has been actively reporting and analyzing political events for different newspapers for over 18 years. He has also successfully covered national and state elections in Nigeria since the inception of this democracy in 1999.
