You Stood Logic on its Head: MURIC Replies Christian Group
The Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) has replied a Christian group, Christian Rights Nigeria (CRN), about an accusation of being responsible for the rejection of 17 out of the 39 commissioner nominees whose names were sent to the Lagos State House of Assembly for confirmation.
However, MURIC has described the allegation as laughable, kindergarten and pedestrian. The Muslim group advised its accusers to learn the difference between elected posts and appointments.
MURIC’s response was given today by its Executive Director, Professor Ishaq Akintola.
“Our attention has been drawn to the allegation of a Christian group, Christian Rights Nigeria (CRN), that MURIC was responsible for the rejection of 17 of the 39 commissioner nominees whose names were sent to the Lagos State House of Assembly for confirmation.
“According to CRN, the lopsided list should remain as it was because there are more Muslims in the House of Assembly than Christians, that the same is the situation among the 57 local government chairmen in the state while all the three senators representing Lagos are Muslims (https://www.vanguardngr.com/2023/08/stop-religious-politics-christian-group-tackles-muric-over-lagos-assembly-decision-to-reject-commissioner-nominees/).
“The arguments of CRN are laughable, kindergarten, pedestrian and prebendalist. It is jejune for the Christian group to rationalise Governor Sanwo-Olu’s ratio 31:8 lopsided list in favour of Christians by referring to the larger number of Muslims in the Lagos House of Assembly, the majority Muslim chairmen of local governments and the three Muslim senators representing Lagos. CRN’s arguments stand logic on its head.
“These are simply evidence of the larger Muslim population in Lagos when compared to that of Christians. It further indicts Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu who ignored this demographic reality when he deliberately but heavily tilted the list in favour of the minority Christian population. Sanwo-Olu called for it. He woke the sleeping giant.
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“We are hugely amused at the show of infantility on the part of the Christian group which appeared determined to equate political appointment with elective post. Appointment is different from election. Or did Governor Sanwo-Olu appoint the 40 members in the Lagos House of Assembly? Did he single-handedly empanel the 57 local government chairmen? Was he the one who handpicked the three Muslim senators?
“Commissioners are appointed, not elected. They are appointed, ceteris paribus, by the governor acting alone or in concert with some political influencers. This is why commissioners are not the vox populi. On the contrary, lawmakers are elected by the people. They are the people’s representatives.
“It is therefore naive and a manifestation of juvenile innocence on the part of the Christian group to blame Muslims for having more Muslim lawmakers in the House than Christians. It is simply a reflection of the true numerical status of Muslims and the population distribution between Muslims and Christians in Lagos State. Those members were elected. They are the choices of the people. There is no scintilla of doubt that CRN has based its position on the peripheral and totally ignored the tangential. It will not fly.
“Only one man, the governor, picked appointed commissioners and by so doing, he sought to put asunder what democracy had put together. It was an attempt to get by the bends what Lagos Christians could not get by the straight. Muslims got the higher number of lawmakers by exercising their franchise and that is their Allah-given fundamental human right. Nobody can take that from them.
“It must be noted that the Muslim lawmakers who are the majority in the Lagos House of Assembly today are not nincompoops. They also got to the House by dint of hard work, credibility and pedigree. On the contrary the Christian governor attempted to confer an entitlement mentality on Lagos Christians that is not based on merit or any acceptable parameter either by national or global rating.
“We contend that it is not right for just one man to overturn a perceived lower number of elected representatives with just a stroke of the pen. It is autocratic, authoritative and totalitarian. Hitler of Germany, Mussolini of Italy and Lenin of communist Russia must have turned in their graves over Governor Sanwo-Olu’s unfair, unjust and undemocratic disposition.
“Instead of blaming MURIC for the failure of Lagos Christians to smuggle a Christian cabinet through the backdoor, we advise the Christian group, CRN, to go back home and learn the ropes.” Professor Akintola said.
