The Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) has urged the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Ahmed Bola Tinubu, to consult 12 APC northern governors (Noble Dozen) on the choice of running mate for the 2023 elections.
The MURIC director, Professor Ishaq Akintola, in a statement yesterday, noted that ‘Noble Dozen’ is the name the organisation gave to the 12 northern governors who stood by the idea of the transfer of power to the South.
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“Tinubu should leverage on the confidence they reposed on him and reciprocate by allowing them to pick a running mate for him. Of course, they may suggest two names and allow him to pick one out of the two.
“This will definitely diminish the so-called North-South dichotomy and further cement the unity of our great country, Nigeria,” he said.
He said that while the organisation submits that credibility, integrity and competence must be the overriding parameters, the faith of the running mate should not be an issue.
According to him, if it has never been an issue in places like Jos, Benue, Ekiti, Ondo, Edo, the South Eastern states and the South-South, where both the governors and their deputies have always been Christians in spite of the existence of a substantial number of Muslims, it suddenly should not become an issue at the federal level.
He said, “Though we have no special objection to the choice of a Christian running mate, it will be wise for him to allow the ‘Noble Dozen’ to influence his choice.”