By Iniubong Sam
Nigeria is once again being forced to confront the dangerous intersection of religion and politics. This time, the controversy is not simply about whether President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima should return on a Muslim-Muslim ticket in 2027.
It is about what happens when political support is transformed into a language of religious superiority. Prominent Islamic cleric, Sheikh Sani Yahaya Jingir, has stirred outrage after urging Muslims to prepare their voter cards and support another Muslim-Muslim ticket, while calling on them to prove that those he described as “infidels” were wrong about their numbers.
But Jingir did not stop there. He described Nigeria as a Muslim-majority country and declared that those who do not want to accept a Muslim-Muslim ticket should leave Nigeria, insisting that the country “belongs to us.” He also framed the success of the Muslim-Muslim ticket as a demonstration of Muslim dominance. These are not words that should be casually dismissed as ordinary political rhetoric.
They are deeply troubling remarks in a country where religious tension has, at different times, contributed to division, violence and loss of lives.
And this is where the question becomes unavoidable, Where is the Federal Government?
THIS IS BIGGER THAN TINUBU AND SHETTIMA
Let us be clear, Nigerians have every constitutional right to support a Muslim-Muslim ticket. They equally have the right to oppose it. That is democracy.
The problem is not Jingir’s right to support a political arrangement. The problem is the dangerous religious language with which he has chosen to sell that political position.
A presidential election should be a contest over leadership, competence, policies, character, security, economic development and the future of Nigeria. It should not become a religious census. It should not be reduced to a contest over whether Muslims or Christians are more numerous. And it certainly should not become a platform for one religious group to declare its dominance over another.
Nigeria belongs to all Nigerians. Not Muslims alone. Not Christians alone. Not any religious group. Nigeria’s constitutional order does not confer ownership of the country on any religion.
That is why Jingir’s statement should concern not only Christians, but every Nigerian who believes in the unity of the country.
The National Human Rights Commission has taken a strong position on the matter, and rightly so. On Tuesday, the NHRC called on the Inspector-General of Police, the Director-General of the Department of State Services and other relevant authorities to immediately arrest and prosecute Sheikh Yahaya Jingir for hate speech and incitement.
The Commission described the remarks as hateful and inciting, warning that they could undermine equality, non-discrimination and peaceful coexistence in Nigeria. It also warned that such statements are particularly dangerous as the country moves towards another general election, saying inflammatory rhetoric could divide Nigerians along religious lines and potentially lead to violence.
The Executive Secretary of the NHRC, Chief Tony Ojukwu, SAN, further indicated that Jingir’s arrest and prosecution would serve as a deterrent to people who may seek to exploit religion for political gain.
The NHRC is right to be concerned. This is not about silencing a religious leader. It is about asking whether there should be consequences when influential individuals use religious identity to create an atmosphere of “us versus them” in a country preparing for a highly contested election.
If the country’s human rights institution considers the remarks serious enough to warrant arrest and prosecution, Nigerians deserve to know whether the Federal Government shares that concern.
The Christian Association of Nigeria has also strongly condemned Jingir’s comments. CAN, through its Chairman in the 19 Northern States and the Federal Capital Territory, Rev. John Hayab, described the use of the word “infidel” against Christians as offensive and capable of worsening religious tension in the country.
Hayab also questioned why the remarks were made in the presence of political leaders without an immediate rebuke, arguing that such a statement should have been condemned instantly. CAN’s position deserves to be taken seriously.
Calling fellow Nigerians “infidels” while urging them to prove their numerical inferiority is not the kind of language that strengthens national unity. It does the opposite. No Nigerian should be made to feel like a stranger in his or her own country because of religion.
A Christian who rejects a Muslim-Muslim ticket does not become less Nigerian. A Muslim who rejects religious politics does not become less Nigerian. And a Christian who supports a Muslim candidate does not become a Muslim.
Politics should not erase citizenship. Religion should not determine who belongs.
BUT WHERE IS THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT?
This is perhaps the most important question arising from the controversy. The NHRC has spoken. CAN has spoken. Other Nigerians have condemned the remarks.
But Nigerians are yet to hear a clear and unequivocal public position from the Federal Government on Jingir’s comments. That silence is troubling. The Federal Government cannot and should not police every controversial opinion expressed by citizens.
Freedom of expression is fundamental to democracy. But freedom of expression does not mean that the government must remain indifferent when influential rhetoric is capable of worsening religious tension.
There is a difference between protecting someone’s right to express an opinion and refusing to address the consequences of inflammatory rhetoric.
The Federal Government does not need to take sides between Christians and Muslims. It needs to take the side of Nigeria. If the government agrees with the NHRC that the remarks constitute hate speech or incitement, Nigerians should know what action is being taken. If it disagrees, Nigerians should also know why. What Nigerians should not have is silence.
WHAT HAPPENS IF THIS BECOMES THE NEW POLITICAL LANGUAGE?
Nigeria has experienced enough religious and ethnic tension to understand how dangerous words can become when they are repeatedly used to divide citizens. Words can mobilise. Words can divide. Words can turn neighbours into enemies.
That is why religious and political leaders must exercise extraordinary responsibility as the 2027 elections approach. The Muslim-Muslim ticket can be debated. Supporters can defend it. Opponents can reject it.
But the argument should be based on leadership, competence, policies and performance not on which religion has conquered or dominated another. If the APC believes Tinubu and Shettima deserve another mandate, it should tell Nigerians why. If Nigerians agree, they will vote for them. If they disagree, they will reject them.
That is democracy. There is no need to turn the ballot box into a battlefield between Muslims and Christians.
JINGIR DOES NOT SPEAK FOR EVERY MUSLIM
It is equally important to make this clear. Sheikh Jingir’s comments should not be interpreted as the position of every Nigerian Muslim. They are not. Millions of Nigerian Muslims live peacefully alongside Christians every day. They work together. They trade together. They study together. They build communities together.
They understand that political disagreement does not require religious hatred. Nigeria’s Muslims are not a monolith. Neither are its Christians. And that is precisely why inflammatory statements from influential individuals must not be allowed to define entire religious communities.
THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT MUST NOT WAIT
The Federal Government still has an opportunity to make its position clear. It should not wait until inflammatory rhetoric becomes normalised. It should not wait until political competition becomes religious hostility. And it should not wait until another crisis forces everyone to ask why the warning signs were ignored.
The NHRC has already made its position clear. CAN has condemned the remarks. The message from both institutions is simple: religion must not be weaponised to divide Nigerians.
The Federal Government should now tell Nigerians where it stands. Does it condemn Jingir’s remarks? Does it consider them dangerous? Does it support the NHRC’s call for arrest and prosecution?. And if not, why not. These are legitimate questions in a democracy. The government does not need to defend Christians against Muslims or Muslims against Christians.
It needs to defend the Nigerian idea. Because Nigeria is not owned by any religion. The Tinubu/Shettima ticket may be Muslim-Muslim. But Nigeria is not.
Nigeria is Muslim and Christian. Nigeria is North and South, East and West. Nigeria is Hausa, Yoruba, Igbo, Ibibio, Tiv, Kanuri, Ijaw and hundreds of other identities. Above all, Nigeria is one country. No religious leader, regardless of how influential, should be allowed to turn a democratic election into a contest for religious ownership.
The NHRC has spoken. CAN has spoken. Nigerians are waiting for the Federal Government to speak. And on an issue this sensitive, silence is not enough.
