Former Kaduna governor Nasir El-Rufai has spoken of his support for a political system that does not consider ethnicity and religion, in his first public comment on the touchy subject after controversially calling for prolonged Muslim leadership in Kaduna and Nigeria.
Mr El-Rufai said decisions taken by the Tinubu-Shettima administration, both Muslims, show leadership should be by merit not “entitlement”.
– Key quotes to note
“As a people, the earlier we distill ourselves from the primordial ethno-religious perception of things, especially as it concerns national leadership, the better for us,” he said Sunday at a book launch marking the retirement of Ishaq Akintola, a professor, from the Lagos State University.
Mr Akintola leads the Muslim Rights Concerns (MURIC), which advocates the rights of Muslims.
“The way with which the present administration at the centre is changing things for the common good of the Nigerian people within a short period shows that leadership should be hinged on merit and not entitlement basis,” Mr El-Rufai said, according to the News Agency of Nigeria.
“We must de-emphasise religion and ethnic colouration for us to build a society where no one should be discriminated upon on the basis of ethic nationality, religion or political leaning.”
– Why this matters
Mr El-Rufai’s comments are similar to what he said when seen in a video over a month ago speaking in Hausa to clerics, telling them Nigeria should embrace a political system that is founded on merit. Yet, in the same speech, he assured them of his preference for Muslims to lead for decades.
The former governor said he considered faith when choosing leaders even though he said the opposite in public. He said the presidential bid of Labour Party candidate, Peter Obi, failed because it was based on religious campaign, and that the outcome “silenced” the Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN.
The remarks were widely condemned.
On Sunday, Mr El-Rufai said, “As members of the two major religious group in the country, if we find ourselves in public positions, we should ensure we practice the basic principles of leadership as encapsulated in both Christian and Islamic religion.
“Both religions espoused the culture of good leadership, but some individual persons tend to do that which is at variance with the scriptures.”
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The former Kaduna governor, who has also been criticised for his handling of deadly attacks in parts of the state especially Southern Kaduna, said leadership choice based on entitlement in Kaduna plunged the state into protracted crisis in the past.
He said a recent change in the old tradition of leadership choice changed things for the better, according to NAN. In reality, Kaduna faced intense insecurity in the last eight years.
Mr Akintola’s book is titled “My Jihad”. He is retiring after reaching the mandatory age of 70.
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