The presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, has said his choice of picking a former governor of Borno State, Sen. Kashim Shettima, as his running mate was not based on religion.

Tinubu, a Muslim from the South-West region of the country, on July 10, announced Shettima, a Muslim from the North-East, as his running mate.

The Muslim-Muslim ticket elicited criticism from some Nigerians who described it as an “injustice” to Christians.

However, the two-term former governor of Lagos State, in an interactive session with the leadership of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) in Abuja on Wednesday, assured the Christian body that he made the best available choice at his disposal without recourse to religious sentiments.

The APC presidential flag-bearer said: “I did not choose Senator Shettima so that we could form a same faith ticket. The ticket was constructed as a 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 at once a very momentous yet very intimate decision.

“Resting such a key decision on religious affiliation as the primary weight did not sit well with me. I am not saying there were not good and adequate potential running mates of the Christian faith.

“What I am saying is that the times we inhabit do not lend themselves to the good or adequate. We have urgent problems that lend themselves not to a Christian or Muslim solution. We need the best solution.

“Every time I thought about it, and I did think a lot; I came to the same conclusion, Kashim Shettima.

READ ALSO: Tinubu to CAN: My wife, children are Christians

“His faith was immaterial, he is a brilliant man with superior intellectual capacity. He is studious and detailed oriented. Enjoying excellent organization skills, Shettima fully understands the vital difference between governance and  politics.

“This exceptionally gifted human being has humility of spirit, courage of his convictions and a strongly progressive world view in harmony with my own perspectives on government and its relationship to the governed.

“I trust the calibre of the man. I know the great lengths he went in fighting Boko Haram in his state. He did his best to protect the Christian community and rebuilt damaged churches.

“This man understands the value of our national diversity in all of its ramifications, including religious. He possesses the courage to stand up to those who would wreck that diversity and freedom.”

Tinubu continued: “I know people have reacted harshly to my selection. They have done so without knowing the man or giving him or me a fair chance.

“The rumour that this is some plot to suppress the Christian community is untrue and unfortunate.

“I can no more suppress the Christians of this nation than I can suppress the Christians in my own household, my very family. You all know my wife is Christian and a pastor. My children are Christians. I can no more disown them and their choice of faith than I can disown myself. As a husband and father to Christian wife and children, hearing such allegations is hurtful.”

He, however, shared his campaign policies with the Christian leaders, asking for their support ahead of the 2023 general election.

On his part, the CAN President, Daniel Ukoh, presented a charter of demands and issues to Tinubu.

Okoh, on behalf of the association, demanded among others state police or a decentralised policing system, devolution of power to states, equal rights for all religions and their adherents, right to self-determination by all ethnic groups, right to control natural resources by communities that bear them, no to open grazing, and equitable electoral system that guarantees the right to vote and be voted for by all.

Tinubu was accompanied to the session by his wife, Sen. Oluremi Tinubu; his running mate, Sen. Kashim Shettima; Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila; Governors Hope Uzodinnma (Imo), David Umahi (Ebonyi), Abdullahi Ganduje (Kano), and Abdulrahman Abdulrasaq (Kwara), among others.

The Star