FOR THE PEACEFUL COEXISTENCE OF ALL THE PEOPLE OF KADUNA STATE TO HAVE EQUAL SHARE AND PARTICIPATION IN GOVERNANCE
Dear Governor El-Rufai of Kaduna State,
Greetings to you and the entire people of Kaduna State, who by their willingness and believe in your ability to govern them well entrusted the governance of Kaduna State into your hands by electing you 'Governor' in the 2015 general elections; a decision that was carried out without any 'religious sentiments' by the good people of Kaduna State who are both Christians and Muslims. May God Almighty give you divine wisdom to govern well so that your name will be written in gold by the good people of Kaduna State after your successful tenure. Amen.
Nigeria, as a country is often known and referred as a 'Secular State', meaning it is devoid of any religious identity, thereby giving room to the citizens of the country to practice whatever faith they so choose without any form of coercion, fear, intimidation or segregation by any individual or group of people, provided such a belief/practice is not in conflict with the nation's constitution, be it Christianity, Islam, atheism, voodoo, traditional etc. This ought to be the 'true identity' of the Nigerian State but sadly, the nation seemed faired only to the Islamic religion and aligned with it to the detriment of other practicing faith across Nigeria. This is an open secret because it is 'only Islam' that was accorded reference in the Nigerian Constitution, to the extent of bringing 'Sharia law' (a religious Islamic law) into the national document speaking for both Muslims and non-Muslims alike. This indeed is very unfair and ought not to be, however not the focus here.
Considering the above, it is safe to conclude that Governor El-Rufai (a Muslim) did the right thing to have selected Mr. Barnabas Yusuf Bala Bantex (a Christian) as his running mate in the 2015 governorship election in Kaduna State, and they both won their election as the Kaduna populace preferred their candidacy to other contestants. The rest is now history.
As the 2019 general elections approaches, it is expected of good team players to continue their team work in achieving better results should they aspire to seek a reelection to consolidate their performances provided the constitution offers such policy. Behold, Governor El-Rufai and his Deputy, Mr. Barnabas are in their first term, and they qualified to seek a reelection by law to govern Kaduna State again. Nevertheless, the current Deputy Governor is 'Not' seeking any reelection as deputy governor, but have since secured a senatorial ticket for Kaduna South Senatorial District. I wish him all the best in his future endeavors.
But very sadly, Governor El-Rufai decided to dish his previous arrangement of equal rights of the Christians and Muslims in the governance of Kaduna State, to 'a Muslim - Muslim ticket' for the upcoming 2019 governorship elections. This action of El-Rufai does not only put spanner to his team work with the current Kaduna State Deputy Governor, Barnabas Bantex (though the later decided not to run as deputy governor in the 2019 election), but also sending a 'stern signal' to the non-Muslim citizens of the state that come 2019 should he win his reelection bid, he is only going to be a governor to the Muslim community, by selecting Hadiza Balarabe (a fellow Muslim) as his running mate for the 2019 election. This is religiously imbalance considering the 'sensitive' religious situation of the Kaduna people, and the volatile nature of the state towards religious differences.
Again, it paints Governor El-Rufai in bad light as a 'religious extremist' and in extension a 'fanatic' with a hidden interpretation of recognizing Kaduna State as 'an Islamic state' away from the secular State it presently stand. The good people of Kaduna State deserves an explanation from Governor El-Rufai what he actually desired by foisting a Muslim - Muslim ticket on them other than his claims of competency.
Although Governor El-Rufai was celebrated in some quarters that he made the best choice by selecting a woman for the deputy governorship position, but this is an indictment on Governor El-Rufai that though he was 'gender wise' by his selection, but became 'religious unwise' by not selecting a female Christian as his running mate in the 2019 elections.
Nevertheless, in an attempt to justify his religious imbalance in selecting a fellow Muslim to run with him, Governor El-Rufai opined that he consulted with President Muhammadu Buhari over the decision of his running mate choice. As good as the claims may appear, it is however the good people of Kaduna State, rather than the President that should be consulted as far as the deputy governorship position was concerned. After all, it is the people of Kaduna State that will employ (vote) you and they are the ones you will precide over as governor, not Mr. President.
Meanwhile, should Governor El-Rufai claims be true about consulting with Mr. President over his deputy governor's choice for the 2019 elections, it is safe to believed that the lopsided and nepotistic appointments of President Buhari is a direct fallout of the kind of advice that Mr. President usually gets from the likes of El-Rufai and others in the corridors of power.
So, how will there be religious tolerance if a governor elected with no religious mandate decides to play a religious card in a multi-religious state such as Kaduna? May God help us.
I therefore call on Governor Nasir Ahmad El-Rufai to rescind his recent religious imbalance decision over his choice for the deputy governor position in the 2019 elections.
God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
Lugard Ekhator, writes from Benin City.
Dear Governor El-Rufai of Kaduna State,
Greetings to you and the entire people of Kaduna State, who by their willingness and believe in your ability to govern them well entrusted the governance of Kaduna State into your hands by electing you 'Governor' in the 2015 general elections; a decision that was carried out without any 'religious sentiments' by the good people of Kaduna State who are both Christians and Muslims. May God Almighty give you divine wisdom to govern well so that your name will be written in gold by the good people of Kaduna State after your successful tenure. Amen.
Nigeria, as a country is often known and referred as a 'Secular State', meaning it is devoid of any religious identity, thereby giving room to the citizens of the country to practice whatever faith they so choose without any form of coercion, fear, intimidation or segregation by any individual or group of people, provided such a belief/practice is not in conflict with the nation's constitution, be it Christianity, Islam, atheism, voodoo, traditional etc. This ought to be the 'true identity' of the Nigerian State but sadly, the nation seemed faired only to the Islamic religion and aligned with it to the detriment of other practicing faith across Nigeria. This is an open secret because it is 'only Islam' that was accorded reference in the Nigerian Constitution, to the extent of bringing 'Sharia law' (a religious Islamic law) into the national document speaking for both Muslims and non-Muslims alike. This indeed is very unfair and ought not to be, however not the focus here.
Considering the above, it is safe to conclude that Governor El-Rufai (a Muslim) did the right thing to have selected Mr. Barnabas Yusuf Bala Bantex (a Christian) as his running mate in the 2015 governorship election in Kaduna State, and they both won their election as the Kaduna populace preferred their candidacy to other contestants. The rest is now history.
As the 2019 general elections approaches, it is expected of good team players to continue their team work in achieving better results should they aspire to seek a reelection to consolidate their performances provided the constitution offers such policy. Behold, Governor El-Rufai and his Deputy, Mr. Barnabas are in their first term, and they qualified to seek a reelection by law to govern Kaduna State again. Nevertheless, the current Deputy Governor is 'Not' seeking any reelection as deputy governor, but have since secured a senatorial ticket for Kaduna South Senatorial District. I wish him all the best in his future endeavors.
But very sadly, Governor El-Rufai decided to dish his previous arrangement of equal rights of the Christians and Muslims in the governance of Kaduna State, to 'a Muslim - Muslim ticket' for the upcoming 2019 governorship elections. This action of El-Rufai does not only put spanner to his team work with the current Kaduna State Deputy Governor, Barnabas Bantex (though the later decided not to run as deputy governor in the 2019 election), but also sending a 'stern signal' to the non-Muslim citizens of the state that come 2019 should he win his reelection bid, he is only going to be a governor to the Muslim community, by selecting Hadiza Balarabe (a fellow Muslim) as his running mate for the 2019 election. This is religiously imbalance considering the 'sensitive' religious situation of the Kaduna people, and the volatile nature of the state towards religious differences.
Again, it paints Governor El-Rufai in bad light as a 'religious extremist' and in extension a 'fanatic' with a hidden interpretation of recognizing Kaduna State as 'an Islamic state' away from the secular State it presently stand. The good people of Kaduna State deserves an explanation from Governor El-Rufai what he actually desired by foisting a Muslim - Muslim ticket on them other than his claims of competency.
Although Governor El-Rufai was celebrated in some quarters that he made the best choice by selecting a woman for the deputy governorship position, but this is an indictment on Governor El-Rufai that though he was 'gender wise' by his selection, but became 'religious unwise' by not selecting a female Christian as his running mate in the 2019 elections.
Nevertheless, in an attempt to justify his religious imbalance in selecting a fellow Muslim to run with him, Governor El-Rufai opined that he consulted with President Muhammadu Buhari over the decision of his running mate choice. As good as the claims may appear, it is however the good people of Kaduna State, rather than the President that should be consulted as far as the deputy governorship position was concerned. After all, it is the people of Kaduna State that will employ (vote) you and they are the ones you will precide over as governor, not Mr. President.
Meanwhile, should Governor El-Rufai claims be true about consulting with Mr. President over his deputy governor's choice for the 2019 elections, it is safe to believed that the lopsided and nepotistic appointments of President Buhari is a direct fallout of the kind of advice that Mr. President usually gets from the likes of El-Rufai and others in the corridors of power.
So, how will there be religious tolerance if a governor elected with no religious mandate decides to play a religious card in a multi-religious state such as Kaduna? May God help us.
I therefore call on Governor Nasir Ahmad El-Rufai to rescind his recent religious imbalance decision over his choice for the deputy governor position in the 2019 elections.
God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
Lugard Ekhator, writes from Benin City.
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