The Director of Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC), Prof. Ishaq Lakin Akintola, has reiterated that it is the turn of a Muslim from the South West to emerge as the next president of Nigeria in 2023.
He also declared that the former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, lacked the moral right to oppose a Muslim-Muslim ticket in the All Progressives Congress (APC).
- Relief for manufacturers as FG clamps down on imported tomato paste
- Appeal tribunal affirms Maikalangu as AMAC chair
He said Dogara was only exhibiting his hatred because he could not tolerate the presence of Muslims in his Bogoro Local Government of Bauchi State.
Akintola spoke in Lagos while delivering a lecture at the quarterly da’wah workshop organised by the Lekki Muslim Ummah (LEMU) with the theme, ‘Role of Muslims in Nation Building’.
The Chief Imam of Lekki Central Mosque, Ridwan Jamiu, and founder of Ma’ad Al-Baseerah, Abeokuta Ogun State, Dr Afeez Adeyemi, also spoke on the topic.
Akintola decried what he called the age-long marginalisation of Muslims in the region, saying out of 17 governors in the region, only one, the governor of Osun State who recently lost his re-election bid, is a Muslim.
“Yet they are crying Islamisation and Fulanisation,” he said.
Akintola recalled that South West leaders who had been opportune to be in Aso Rock either as president or vice-president were non-Muslims.
Imam Jamiu said Nigerians must consider personality, honesty, institutional infrastructure and responsible followership in choosing their leaders.
He said leaders must be approachable, disciplined and always consult the people.