Opposition leader Rabiu Kwankwaso has condemned the inflammatory remarks by Islamic cleric Sheikh Sani Jingir, who branded Christians “infidels” while calling for a repeat of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Muslim-Muslim presidential ticket in 2027.
Speaking at a political gathering organised by the Jama’atu Izalatil Bid’ah Wa Iqamatus Sunnah in Kano, an event attended by Kano State Governor Abba Yusuf and Jigawa State Governor Umar Namadi, Jingir praised President Bola Tinubu’s same-faith 2023 ticket as his “political ideology” and urged Muslims to use their numerical strength at the polls.
“I urge all of us here to go and get our voters’ cards ready,” the cleric said in a viral video, adding: “Let’s show the infidels their limit, who claims they are more populous than us in Nigeria. They are lying.” Dismissing criticism from non-Muslim groups, he insisted: “as a Muslim, I repeat it, Muslim-Muslim! No going back on this.”
The rhetoric triggered swift pushback across political and religious lines. Writing on X, Rabiu Kwankwaso, the vice-presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, stated that “the good people of Kano do not endorse or support these divisive remarks.” Warning against utterances capable of “undermining the very foundation of our nationhood,” the former governor urged leaders to foster reconciliation, adding that the 2027 elections would offer citizens a chance to “reject poor performance at the polls.”
The controversy reopens a polarising debate that dominated the 2023 presidential election, when the APC fielded Bola Tinubu, a South-West Muslim, alongside Kashim Shettima, a North-East Muslim.