Ganduje, Babachir at war over Tinubu’s Muslim-Muslim ticket

Hostilities have erupted between former SGF Babahir Lawal and Kano Gov Umar Ganduje following Babachir’s condemnation of the APC for producing a Muslim-Muslim ticket.

Lawal in an article he published Tuesday alleged that the Ganduje Foundation is being used to forcefully convert Christians to Islam, and the APC presidential candidate Tinubu will converted to Mujahideen for choosing former Borno Gov. Kashim Shettima as his running mate.

Both Babachir and Ganduje were Tinubu’s allies until the choice of running mate divided them.

But Ganduje has dismissed the claim.

In a statement which the state Commissioner for Information, Malam Muhammad Garba, issued on his behalf, Ganduje said the comment was totally false.

He said while there is no compulsion in religion, Islam gives individuals the freedom to choose their own religion, and also provides non-Muslims with considerable economic, cultural and administrative rights.

“It was unfortunate that at a time when the country needs to be united for national development and religious tolerance, a man of Babachir’s caliber, who is highly respected, would spread falsehood without much consideration to his position in the All Progressives Congress (APC) and close relationship with the party’s flagbearer, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

“Going by its activities, the foundation is not faith-based but purely philanthropic in which case, non-Muslims also stand to benefit from the services it renders.

“Ganduje Foundation was set up about 40 years ago and is engaged in philanthropic, humanitarian and charitable activities that included medical, support and assistance to the needy in the society, particularly the orphans and the physically challenged, medical outreach to attend to those with diabetes, hypertension, malaria, dental as well as ante-natal and maternal care,” the statement said.

The governor added that the foundation has built many schools, healthcare centres, distributed free school uniforms and instructional materials to new intake in primary schools, construction of boreholes and mosques.

It stated that available statistics indicates that no fewer than 380,000 people have benefited from the foundation’s Eye Care Programme that included treatment for cataract and glaucoma, as well as distribution of medical glasses.

The statement added that Ganduje always stand for religious harmony in Kano as exemplified by administration’s creation of the Ministry for Religious Affairs, where the state chapter of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) is a partner and enjoys a good working relationship with the governor as well as the introduction of an Inter-Faith Dialogue that promotes religious harmony between Muslims and Christians in the state.

The governor assured that the Muslim-Muslim ticket would not in any way result in the neglect of Christians.