If I couldn’t Islamize my own home, I won’t Islamize Nigeria -Tinubu

• Tinubu has given assurance that he won’t Islamize Nigeria if elected president
• He claimed that his decision was based on the candidate’s qualifications

Bola Tinubu, the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential candidate, pledged Tuesday that if elected president of Nigeria, he would not advance any religious or ethnic agenda.

Speaking in response to accusations that followed his decision to support Kashim Shettima, a Muslim running for vice president, Tinubu claimed that his decision was based on the candidate’s qualifications, friendliness, and potential to assist him to win the election.

The former governor of Lagos State addressed this during an interactive session with the Christian Association of Nigeria’s leadership (CAN). He asserted that he could not Islamize the nation if he was unable to Islamize his own home. He continued by saying that several APC members who objected to his choice of a running mate had applied for the post but were turned down.

But CAN insisted on a policy that would address the crisis of development in the country, including such issues as state police or fully decentralized police authority, clear and unambiguous religious neutrality of the Nigerian state, enforcement of fundamental rights of all Nigerians, as well as economic and social rights.

Tinubu will be in Owerri, the Imo State capital, to speak to an audience of private sector drivers, comprising investors, manufacturers, and traders, among others, preparatory to his main campaign in the state in the coming days.

Laying the template for his discussion with CAN, Tinubu said, “I did not choose Senator Shettima so that we could form a same-faith ticket. The ticket was constructed as the same progressive and people-based ideology ticket.

“I offer a confession. I selected Senator Shettima thinking more about who would best help me govern. Picking a Christian running mate would have been politically easier. But the easy way is rarely the right one. The selection of a running mate is a very meaningful yet very intimate decision.”

Taking aim at his detractors, particularly those within his own party who opposed his selection of the Muslim-Muslim ticket, Tinubu said that some of them vigorously sought the vice presidential position but were turned down by him.

READ ALSO: Tinubu won’t loot Nigeria, he’s wealthy- APC assures

In an effort to allay Christians’ concerns that the APC president poses a threat to Nigeria’s secularism, Tinubu asserted that his family background and record as governor might serve as evidence that he was impartial.

He stated, “As governor of Lagos, I partnered with the Christians to improve lives and foster education. For instance, I returned mission schools to their owners, most of who are Christians. I instituted yearly Christian Denomination Service at the governor’s residence as we approached the New Year. This tradition continues in Lagos.

“More importantly, we fostered an atmosphere of religious tolerance and inter-faith collaboration. My cabinet was diverse and talented. In the exercise of government, I did not give a thought to whether a team member was Christian or Muslim, Yoruba, Igbo or Arewa.”

“To do so would be a prescription for failure in the governance of a varied society, and I am not a man that is familiar with failing,” said Tinubu, adding that he has never supported unjustified prejudice and discrimination.