Before the 2023 presidential election in Nigeria, Primate Elijah Ayodele of INRI Evangelical Spiritual Church was that lonely voice sounding the alarm that a Muslim-Muslim ticket is bad for Nigeria.
Long before Shettima was chosen as Tinubuās running mate, Primate Ayodele had warned the All Progressives Congress and its presidential candidate not to allow such a ticket because it would not help the nation.
Among his warnings were that the ticket would be seen as an attempt to Islamize Nigeria and that it would lead to religious crisis in the nation. He stated that God is against the ticket and that it is against Godās plan for the country.
These were his words:
āAPCās Muslim-Muslim ticket is an Islamic and jihadist agenda that God is against for Nigeria. This is also an attempt to silence Christians in Nigeria, and it will lead to a serious religious crisis in the country.
āAPC has committed a very big blunder; God will not support the APC for this mistake, itās against the plan of God for the prosperity, unity, and strength of Nigeria tomorrow.
āāSenator Kashim Shettima, as the vice president, will not bring anything good to Nigeria. God rejects the Muslim-Muslim ticket for Nigeria.ā
When he saw that some men of God were speaking in support of the ticket, he stated that any pastor supporting such an agenda would face the wrath of God because it was totally against the will of God for the country.
āāGod is against any pastor or Christian leader who supports APCās Muslim-Muslim ticket; they should keep their mouth shut if they donāt want to face the wrath of God.
āGod is against the ticket and has kicked against the plans of the APC to retake Nigeria. The APC is playing God with the Muslim-Muslim ticket; they are so proud of their mistake, God is ready to fight the party for the presidential election, the APC ticket is dead on arrival.ā
Despite this spiritual warning, President Tinubu and his political party went ahead with the combination. However, recent developments have truly confirmed that a Muslim-Muslim ticket isnāt Godās plan for the nation, just as Primate Ayodele shared.
Especially with the issue the US had with Nigeria about the gruesome killing of Christians, which was described as a genocide, itās obvious that even the most powerful country in the world is against such a combination, further reiterating the prophetās warning. This made the US designate Nigeria as a āCountry of Particular Concernā.
One of the issues raised by the US is that Nigeria has more Muslims in government, starting from the President and his Vice, while blaming this on the attacks faced by Christians in the country. The US repeatedly described the perpetrators as Islamic extremists, even leading to the bombing of their hideout on Christmas Day.
Ever since, the presidency has spent a lot of resources trying to get into the good books of the US, making moves to prove that the country isnāt an Islamic country. Just last week, it was revealed that Nigeria spent about $9 million to hire a lobbying firm in the US regarding the issue.
At the moment, President Tinubu is at acrossroadsd and considering replacing Kashim Shettima with a Christian northerner because obviously, retaining a Muslim-Muslim ticket in 2027 again would cause serious attention, especially from the US. It would be seen as an attempt to Islamize the country, which may affect the chances of the President.
Meanwhile, Tinubu could have saved himself from these troubles andcrisess if only he had listened to Primate Ayodele when he was saying it then. If Tinubu had chosen a Christian in the north, the US may not have viewed the crisis as āChristian Genocideā, but obstinacy has led him and the APC to this.
Actions, they say, have consequences, and President Tinubu is already paying for the consequences of his own actions.
