Muslim, Christian clerics endorse Obi, give reasons for rejecting Atiku, Tinubu

.ASUU strike, APC, PDP crises put Obi ahead — Rights group

Obiora Ifoh, Abuja and Phil Okose, Onitsha

Religious Leaders comprising of Islamic Clerics and Bishops numbering about one hundred, Thursday visited the National Headquarters of the Labour Party and asked Nigerians to reject the Presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Ahmed Tinubu and that of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar.

Addressing members of the National Working Committee (NWC) led by the National Chairman, Barrister Julius Abure, Sheikh Muhammad Murtala Muhammad, leader of the Islamic delegation, said they rejected the Muslim /Muslim ticket of the APC because it does not engender peace and unity in a secular society like Nigeria.

He therefore called on Christians and Muslims alike to join hands together to vote for “those that are ready and prepared to take Nigeria out of the present situation”.

In his speech, Archbishop Leonard Bature Kawas, Leader of the Christian delegation, said it was unfair for Atiku to succeed President Muhammadu Buhari another Muslim northerner after spending eight years as president.

He disclosed that the only balance ticket going into the 2023 general elections is the Labour Party ticket of Peter Obi and Datti Baba Ahmed, appealing to Nigerians to queue behind the party to rescue the country from its current woes.

Addressing the religious leaders, National Chairman of Labour Party, Barrister Julius Abure, said “We are under attack, our followers are under attack, we are appealing to Nigerians, religious leaders to pray for us. Initially they said we had no structure, now they have seen that human beings are the structure, they did not initially take us serious, today in their closet, it is Labour Party they are discussing.

“We are getting information that they are going to fight us, they have designated some states that they are going to fight our members. They have been invading the homes of some of our members in Lagos, they have attacked our people in Akwa Ibom, Ebonyi, Enugu and several other states. That is why we are calling for prayers because we know the time of God has come, the time of the People has come.”

Also, Facts emerged Thursday, that the just suspended strike embarked upon by Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, which lingered for about eight months, All Progressives Congress, APC and the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, crises, are advantages to the Presidential candidate of the Labour Party, LP, in  the coming general election as, LP, remains the only one among the big three parties without crisis.

Making this disclosure to newsmen Thursday, in Onitsha, Anambra State, the National President of a human rights group, Human Dignity Restoration Association, HDRA, comrade Jude Achebe, urged Nigerians to vote irrespective of religion, tribe or political party affiliation but an individual who has their interest at heart.

” It is the hand of God that is doing what we are seeing now in the APC where Muslim-Muslim ticket is tearing the party apart and the PDP engulped in intra party crisis over leadership positions. The Governor Onyesom Wike of Rivers State versus Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, PaDP Presidential candidate saga and then the Federal Government/ASUU strike, that has just been suspended after eight months of keeping students out of school.

“The elites have their children schooling overseas, and the redemption started from the IPOB leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu. Just like in the EndSARS, the youths are angry and want a youth that will take over from the old politicans. The barrier of ethnicity, religion and party affiliation is being removed by the youths now and that is the “Obidient”, movement you are seeing all over the country like wild wind”, he stated.

“The social media is also helping to direct the people now, unlike when the NTA and other Government media will blind fold the people. Again the electronic transfer of election results is another sign of credible election as the election can’t be rigged.

“Look at the flood that is devastating now, we were warned earlier by Cameroun to get prepared but the Federal Government did nothing to avert it. We are supposed to build dams even before the 2012 flooding that would have checkmated this one now that is worse.

“So we should not vote who does  not know about governance because we will pay for the consequences like we are paying now. Braindrain is because of Nigerian system, nothing is working, skilled professionals are leaving for overseas jobs as Government doesn’t care”, he further stated.

“Hate speech has become the stock  in trade for PDP and APC that are already in crises, they should stop hate speech and focus on what to tell Nigerians that they will do when elected. Overseas is not done this way. This flood problem started in 1981, and nothing has been done by the successive administrations and the out going one till today, it is unfortunate,” he lamented.