APC Christian groups in North-Central reject Muslim-Muslim ticket, Lalong’s choice as campaign DG

A coalition of North-Central Christian groups in the All Progressives Congress (APC) on Tuesday protested the party’s decision to settle for a Muslim-Muslim ticket in the 2023 general elections.

The groups which came together under the aegis of North- Central Youths and Women Forum also kicked against the appointment of the Plateau State Governor, Simon Lalong, as the Director-General of the party’s Presidential Campaign Council.

The protesters, who comprised members from the six North-Central States and the Federal Capital Territory, later marched to the Presidential Villa, Abuja, where they dropped a letter for President Muhammadu Buhari.

They also carried placards with inscriptions such as “Lalong is a Judas, Lalong is a betrayal, Lalong is on his own,” “We say No to DGship, give us our VP slot,” “On North- Central Christian vice-presidential candidate we stand,” and “Dear Asiwaju…keep your DG, give us a Christian VP, all Christians in the APC say no to DGship.”

The leader of the group, Dauda Yakubu, who addressed journalists during the protest, said various indices within the APC did not suggest that Christians from northern part of Nigeria were considered in the party’s affairs.

In the letter to Buhari, the groups said: “We feel the appointment of Governor Lalong as the Director-General of the Presidential Campaign Council is an insult to our collective sensibilities as a devoted party faithful in the North-Central.

“Mr. President may wish to remember that in the affairs of the party, the North-Central zone has demonstrated an unalloyed commitment to the growth and development of the party. But what has the North-Central received in return?

READ ALSO: 2023: Group urges APC to drop Muslim-Muslim ticket

“We came from far and near to witness first-hand, the news making the rounds that you indeed, sanctioned the Muslim-Muslim ticket of our party. There have also been insinuations that the vice-presidential ticket was not given to a northern Christian because you supported it.

“We know you to be an advocate of unity, ethnic and religious inclusion. But again, we are short of words with the news making the rounds, hence, this open letter in a protest march to hear from you that you were indeed in support of a Muslim-Muslim ticket.

“This is on the heels that as stakeholders of our party, we have consistently advocated for Governor Lalong as the party’s vice-presidential candidate because he possesses all the necessary qualities. But to our dismay, he was appointed as the DG of the Presidential Campaign Council.

“So many questions are left unanswered in our minds regarding the position of the party in the interest of northern Christians. We beg to ask the question that, if a northern Christian is good enough to lead the Presidential Campaign Council, why then is a northern Christian not good enough to be nominated as the vice presidential-candidate of our party?

“It is our considered position that the lines are not connecting for us as stakeholders of the party in the North-Central zone of the country. And consequently, we demand explanations as to why our interests have been jettisoned using a yardstick that defeats common sense.”

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