I Rejected Tinubu As Running Mate In 2007 Due To Muslim-Muslim Ticket – Atiku

The presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar has revealed that he refused to pick the presidential candidate of the All Progressives (APC), Bola Tinubu as his running mate in 2007 because it would be a Muslim-Muslim ticket.

Atiku Reacts To Tinubu’s Muslim-Muslim Ticket

The former vice-president, who spoke in a chat with Arise TV on Friday, was reacting to Tinubu’s decision to pick his fellow Muslim, Kashim Shettima, a former Borno State Governor, as his running mate for the 2023 presidential election.

He claimed that Tinubu had wanted to be his running mate for the Action Congress (AC) presidential ticket in 2007, but he refused because both of them are Muslims.

Atiku, who described the Muslim-Muslim ticket as “unwelcoming and unripe for Nigeria as a democratic state”, added that he and Tinubu are “still friends” but they “have political differences”

He said, “My fundamental disagreement and political departure with Asiwaju [Tinubu] since 2007 was due to the Muslim-Muslim ticket. Remember, I opted out of PDP because of zoning, and together with Asiwaju we formed ACN.

“Tinubu wanted to be my running mate when I was given the ACN presidential ticket in 2007, but I disagreed. And because of that, he switched his support to the late Umar Yaradua. That was the parting point.

“The Muslim-Muslim ticket has always been my fundamental disagreement. Nigeria is a multi-ethnic and multi-religious nation, and there should be a religious balance in our leadership.

“We are still friends, of course. But that doesn’t mean we won’t have political differences. We have been having political differences ever since we became friends. Nothing unusual about that.”

KanyiDaily recalls that Atiku Abubakar had also revealed why the presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP) Peter Obi, cannot win the 2023 general election.