A founding member of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Bayelsa State, Prince Preye Aganaba, has expressed disappointment over inflammatory and extreme views by a former Secretary to the Federal Government (SGF), Babachir Lawal, on the same faith presidential ticket of the APC.
Aganaba, the prince of Odi Kingdom, who was addressing APC party faithful in Yenagoa on Friday, said Lawal crossed the line of responsibility expected of him as an elder and delved into the arena of scaremongering as he dissipated his energy promoting unfounded fears capable of further dividing the country.
Aganaba, a Christian, said it was unimaginable that Lawal, who should have known better, toed the path of the opposition political leaders, who whipped similar religious sentiments against President Muhammadu Buhari during the 2015 and 2019 general elections.
“This is the same Lawal, who as SGF, couldn’t balance political appointments between contending political groups within the APC and between geopolitical zones that led to a lot of backlash on the President.
We recalled how the opposition continued with their narratives that Buhari was going to Islamise Nigeria despite having a Christian Vice-President. Buhari has been the President for over seven years. Has he Islamised Nigeria? The answer is no. It is on record that the Boko Haram insurgents are the enemies of everyone. These terrorists have killed more Muslims than Christians.
“The fact is that nobody can Islamise Nigeria. The Presidential Candidate of the APC, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has built a track record of tolerance, inclusiveness and liberalism.
“In Tinubu’s years as a politician, he has never expressed extreme religious views on any issue. His running mate and former Governor of Borno State, Kashim Shettima, has proved himself over the years as a fine gentleman, who as a governor of Borno, ran an all-inclusive government that accommodated all religions, a fact that had been attested to by the christian community in that State”.
