THE Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) has appealed to President Bola Tinubu to avoid favouring one ethnic group or faith above others and ensure that all sections of the country benefit from appointments made by his government while.
MURIC, in a statement by its Executive Director, Professor Ishaq Akintola, asserted that appointments made so far by Tinubu were lopsided because they favoured mainly Yorubas and Christians.
The organisation advised the president to ensure balance in subsequent appointments.
It said: “We are shocked to our marrows that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has been appointing Christians and Yorubas mainly to key positions since the inception of this administration at the expense of Muslims. For instance, five out of eight security chiefs appointed earlier are Christians. Ministerial posts have not been different.
“All five key appointments made by President Tinubu to revive the economy were given to Christians and Yorubas mainly.
“Many competent Muslims who campaigned and voted Muslim-Muslim ticket during the presidential election were ignored. It is interesting to note that some of those Muslims are eminently qualified to hold key political offices since there are professors, engineers, medical doctors and holders of doctorate degrees among them.
“MURIC rejects this trending narrative that makes competence the reason for concentrating appointments in any particular tribe, religion or group. Government’s tentacles should be spread nationwide in the search for competence. Neither should the need for skills be used as a cover for the marginalisation of some sections of Nigeria.
“We assert clearly, emphatically and unequivocally that competence is not the monopoly of any tribe, faith or group. Talented Nigerians are to be found everywhere if sincere searches are conducted… All sectors must therefore have equal opportunities to participate in governance.
“This regime must be wary of allegation of nepotism which the previous regime was accused of. Nigeria is a vast country with talented men and women in all nooks and crannies. Government must not just pick the low hanging skills or those on the water surface. It must send its underwater swimmers to dive below the surface in order to bring the gems to dry land.
“Our message to President Tinubu is this (and we want the president’s handlers to take this to him), the cacophony of voices of dissatisfied Muslims has reached an unbearable crescendo such that MURIC is now constrained to speak up. People are complaining, particularly Muslims from the North and South West, and they can only be ignored at the risk of foregoing 2027.
“President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is our Muslim brother but that should not stop us from criticising him if he does the wrong thing. The Prophet (SAW) said, ‘Help your brother when he is wronged and even when he is wrong…”
“Tinubu’s next appointments must see a shift in body language. All regions, faiths and sections must benefit from political appointments made by this government while no ethnic group or faith is seen to be favoured above others.”
