Rotimi Fashakin, a former National Publicity Secretary of the defunct Congress for Progressive Change, has said Maj. Gen. Muhammadu Buhari would choose a southern Christian as his running mate in the forthcoming 2015 presidential elections.
Buhari is one of the presidential aspirants on the platform All Progressives Congress (APC) and there have been speculations that he would choose a fellow Muslim as his running mate.
According to Fashakin, a prominent figure in Buhari’s campaign organisation who spoke to Punch, the possibility of a Muslim-Muslim ticket has been ruled out, and as a result, the Buhari-Fashola ticket, which had been suggested, would not be possible.
He said: “We know clearly that those working for (President Goodluck) Jonathan are ready to play religious politics. They are ready to make religion a big issue. They may make it seem as if religion is the only problem we have in the country. They have been saying it that the APC is an Islamic party and they are doing everything to make it appear so.
“We are not ready to play into their hands. We know that this nation has been unfortunately divided along religious and tribal lines. Tribe and religion have become the fault lines in the country. Any party that does not want any baggage, going into the 2015 election, should steer clear from this issue of Muslim-Muslim ticket.
“We do not intend to go into the election with any baggage. We will do the right thing. So, Buhari-Fashola ticket cannot work out because it is a Muslim-Muslim ticket.”
Though Fashakin declined revealing the identities of Buhari’s potential running mates, he said the former head of state has many options to pick from.
“There are many options on the table. There are different blocs; you have the governors; you have the national leaders; you have the National Assembly caucuses. These are formidable blocs in the APC.”
“I will not tell you precisely where the running mate of the Gen. Buhari would come from. But just know that all the interests of the various power blocs would be taken into consideration,” he said.
He however said special consideration would be given to the South-South geopolitical zone so that they the people of Niger Delta would not get the wrong signal thinking the party wanted to take power away from them.
Recall that former President Olusegun Obasanjo had warned the APC against Muslim-Muslim or Christian-Christian ticket, saying that era had gone.
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