By Sunday Ameh
A former Deputy Speaker of the Ogun State House of Assembly and Assistant Pastor in Charge of Province in the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), Pastor Remmy Hazzan, has defended the All Progressives Congress’ (APC) decision to retain its Muslim-Muslim presidential ticket ahead of the 2027 general elections, insisting the arrangement does not threaten Nigeria’s religious balance.
Hazzan made the remarks on Monday during an interview on Frontline, a current affairs programme on Eagle 102.5FM, Ilese-Ijebu, Ogun State, where he dismissed concerns that the APC’s ticket undermines the interests of Christians, arguing that President Bola Tinubu has demonstrated religious tolerance.
“I belong to the All Progressives Congress. I believe that we are not religious bigots. We do not in any way promote anything that shows favour for one religion over another or threatens the existence of any faith,” he said.
According to him, the President’s marriage to an ordained pastor of the Redeemed Christian Church of God is evidence of his commitment to religious inclusiveness.
“The wife of the President is an ordained pastor in the Redeemed Christian Church of God. If such a man has lived with his Christian wife, an ordained pastor, for as long as they have been married, that reflects his level of religious tolerance. We believe that same disposition will continue to manifest in his leadership of Nigeria,” Hazzan added.
Addressing criticism of the APC’s Muslim-Muslim ticket, Hazzan maintained that the decision was driven by political realities rather than religious considerations.
“The reasons for the candidature of Mr President and his vice-presidential candidate were based on political exigencies.
There has been no evidence whatsoever that any religion has been threatened by that decision. To that extent, we will have no problem marketing that ticket in 2027,” he said.
He also dismissed claims that the APC considered the Christian voting bloc politically insignificant, describing such assertions as unfounded.
“Nobody has said the Christian voting bloc is insignificant. This is the first time a Southern Muslim has emerged as the presidential candidate of a major political party in Nigeria,” he stated.
Explaining the rationale behind the APC’s decision, Hazzan argued that the party’s choice was influenced by Nigeria’s political history and electoral realities rather than religious bias.
“This is the first time we are actually having a Southern Muslim candidate. When Southern Christians emerged in the past, the Muslim majority in the North did not have difficulty accepting a Muslim running mate. This time, selecting a Northern Christian would have required significant political persuasion among Northern Muslim voters within the party to demonstrate that we are not religiously biased,” he said.
Hazzan insisted that the decision was neither an act of religious exclusion nor a slight against Christians but a practical political strategy under the prevailing circumstances.
“It took a lot of courage for President Bola Tinubu to make that decision. It was not because there was any disregard for the Christian faith,” he added.
While defending the party’s position, Hazzan stressed that competence, rather than religious affiliation, should determine who occupies public office.
“The best of us should rule the rest of us, not the worst ruling the best. Christians should present their best, Muslims should present their best, and even adherents of traditional religion should present their best. When the best compete, the people ultimately benefit,” he said.
Reflecting on the Tinubu administration after three years in office, Hazzan acknowledged that the government’s economic reforms initially caused hardship but argued that the country was beginning to witness signs of recovery.
“The current administration has done so much, and I think we are beginning to reach a point of equilibrium. It is becoming clear that we needed that difficult period if we were to have any hope of returning to prosperity. Mr President should be allowed to complete the good work he has started,” he said.
On the role of Christians in politics, Hazzan rejected the long-held belief that politics is too dirty for believers, insisting that the church must move beyond prayers and actively participate in governance by voting, contesting elections and influencing public policy.
“For a very long time, the church was deceived into believing that politics is dirty and only dirty people should participate. But when something is dirty, it needs cleaning, and only people with clean minds can truly clean it. You clean better from within than from outside,” he said.
The cleric also rejected the notion that politics inevitably corrupts Christians, maintaining that believers can serve in public office without compromising their faith.
“You need to remain conscious of the moral values you have embraced as a Christian and ensure that you are not carried away by the privileges of office to the point of forgetting where you came from,” Hazzan said.
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