Former Presidential aspirant of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, , Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, has stated why he stopped the national leader of the All Progressives Congress, Bola Tinubu from deputizing President Muhammadu Buhari in 2014.
According to Saraki, he stopped Tinubu’s plot of being Buhari’s vice for national interest.
Saraki said this following comments by Tinubu during a meeting with delegates in Ogun State, where Tinubu claimed that Saraki and others opposed his desire to be Buhari’s running mate in the 2015 elections because he was a Muslim.
Responding to the claim by the former Lagos State Governor, Saraki, through his Media Officer, Yusuph Olaniyonu, said that he would not shy away from stopping any act that is capable of causing a religious crisis in the country.
The former senate president stated that both Buhari and Tinubu were Muslims and such, cannot run for president and vice president in a multi-religious country like Nigeria.
“When I and other leaders of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in 2014 stood against having a Muslim-Muslim ticket, it was not a decision targeted at any individual or group but one taken in the national interest.
“Let me make it clear that the decision to oppose the plans by some people to make APC present a Muslim-Muslim ticket in 2015 was in the national interest and I will take the same stand today, tomorrow, and any other day.
“My stance is based on the fact that such a ticket is not good for the unity of the country and will further accentuate one of our fault lines.
“The opposition to a Muslim- Muslim ticket was not targeted at Tinubu or any other person. It was a decision that even all party leaders know helped the victory of the party and also worked for the unity of the country”, he said.
