JIBWIS Leader Jingir Reaffirms Support for Muslim-Muslim Ticket, Says Position Predates Tinubu

The National Chairman of the Jama’atu Ahlus Sunnah Wal-Jama’ah (JIBWIS), Sheikh Muhammad Sani Yahya Jingir, has reaffirmed his support for Muslim-Muslim political tickets, insisting that his position is based on a longstanding personal conviction and did not begin with President Bola Tinubu’s administration.

Jingir said he had the right to advise Nigerian Muslims on how to exercise their constitutional voting rights, while questioning why Christians could openly advocate for candidates from their faith but Muslims would be criticised for doing the same.

“I wonder how Nigerian Christians would call for voting for their own, but somebody will say I have no right to ask for whom we should vote for,” he said.

The cleric stressed that his support for Muslim-Muslim tickets was not limited to President Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima.

“My Muslim-Muslim ticket is not on Ahmed Tinubu and Kashim Shettima, but anybody who believes in what I believe in, on the fact that Nigerian Muslims have suffered enough with their leaders being killed,” Jingir said.

According to him, his advocacy for Muslim-Muslim tickets predates the 2023 presidential election and was not introduced in response to Tinubu’s candidacy.

“My calls and position on Muslim-Muslim tickets is a long-time thing; it didn’t start with Tinubu,” he said.

Jingir explained that Tinubu’s decision to select a Muslim running mate was one of the reasons he had continued to speak publicly in support of the president and the ticket.

“Because he was the one who accepted it, that is why I will continue to talk about him and voting for him, and this is my personal opinion,” he said.

The JIBWIS leader also denied making statements beyond his appeal to Nigerian Muslims to exercise their voting rights and support candidates who reflect their political convictions.

He maintained that he remained committed to the Muslim-Muslim ticket, citing what he described as years of discrimination and political marginalisation against Muslims, particularly in Plateau State.

“Voting Muslim-Muslim tickets is what I stand on, because we have suffered enough in the hands of Christians in Plateau State,” Jingir said.

He alleged that Muslims in parts of Plateau State had faced political exclusion despite their numerical strength, and questioned the fairness of the political process.

“In my state, which we were there before its creation as a state, Christians said we don’t belong and that we should be expelled,” he alleged.

Jingir also referenced historical political developments in explaining the experiences that shaped his views, including the assassination of Sir Ahmadu Bello, the Sardauna of Sokoto and former Premier of Northern Nigeria, as well as the illness of former President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua.

“What I said on the day is what I stand on,” Jingir said, reaffirming his position amid the controversy generated by his recent comments on Nigeria’s political leadership.