Muslim-Muslim Ticket: DSS Warns Buhari Of Danger Ahead

The Department of State Services, DSS warned President Muhammadu Buhari in a report that a one faith presidential ticket will destabilize the country, according to People’s Gazette.

The online newspaper said the secret police warned the president  before  Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the presidential candidate of the ruling APC picked Kassim Shetima, a former Governor of Borno state as his running mate last week.

Tinubu had cited competence as his reason for chosing the former Governor to run with him in next year’s presidential election.

But the Pople’s Gazette, said a processed intelligence report to President Buhari had warned of grave consequences if the APC pressed ahead with picking somebody of the same faith for the position.

The report was said to have been submitted to the NSA Major Gen. Babagana Mungonu (rtd) for onward transmission to the president days after Tinubu emerged APC presidential candidate.

The document had advised Tinubu to consider security implications of his selection before making it public, according to three officials briefed on the report.
“The SSS produced the report and handed a copy to the NSA,” an intelligence officer said.
“The NSA looked at the report and added it for security briefing to the president.’’
“Simply put, our understanding is that the alliance will destabilise Nigeria and embolden attacks on Christian citizens from their fellow Muslim citizens,” the official said.
“The distrust Christians are likely to harbour against a presidency occupied by two Muslims won’t make our work easy at national security level.”
The official said Buhari was not involved in the deliberations that led to Tinubu’s announcement of Kashim Shettima, from the Boko Haram stronghold in Borno, as his 2023 running mate to the ire of Christians across the country.
“People can say whatever they like about the President, but as a senior intelligence administrator I can guarantee you he was not involved in Tinubu’s decision at all,” the official said n a remarkable moment of candour.

Another official said the report was commissioned after Tinubu became the standard-bearer of the party on June 8 and started embracing the idea of a Muslim-Muslim ticket as the most potent strategy to be elected as president in an ethnically and religiously polarised country like Nigeria
Traditionally, northern Muslims have voted more than southern Christians, a traditional pattern which Tinubu looked to exploit, particularly as a similar ticket in 1993 saw the election of Moshood Abiola as president despite picking Babagana Kingibe, a northern Muslim, as running mate.
While the ticket was accepted by Nigerians at the time, the victory was annulled by former dictator Ibrahim Babangida and augured a protracted turmoil across the country.
“Strong intelligence led us to believe that he was passionate about the idea of a Muslim running mate,” the second official, an assistant director at the SSS, said.
“By the time our analysts reassessed the state of the country right now and what would likely come out of a Muslim president and vice-president, everything tilted towards negative and very dangerous times ahead.”
A spokesman for the SSS declined requests to comment on the memo, and both the State House and Tinubu’s campaign headquarters did not respond to requests for comment.
Yet, the report could drive a wedge between the secret police and the man who may be the country’s next president on the back of President Buhari and the ruling party.
The second official also dismissed questions about whether or not the SSS was injecting itself into uncharted political waters which could warrant serious consequences should Tinubu go on to be elected next February, saying it was after Tinubu had already taken the decision that he informed the president.
“We have it in our files that Tinubu went to the president to ask him about who to pick but the president was very reluctant to contribute and Tinubu noticed this before walking away,” the official added. “We have a role to play towards safeguarding national security and our report was not intended as a political intervention.”

Tinubu had unveiled Shettima after paying a Salah homage to Buhari in his Daura, Katsina home last week.

The National Chairman of APC, said Tinubu’s decision is the ‘work of God in response to scathing remarks from not a few Nigerians who said the Muslim-muslim ticket will further polarised the country along religious lines, apart from worsening the security situation in the country