Former Aviation Minister, Femi Fani-Kayode, has launched a scathing attack on Islamic cleric, Sheikh Yahaya Jingir, accusing him of deepening religious tensions in Nigeria with remarks against Christians.
Fani-Kayode said Jingir’s reported declaration that he had “zero regrets” over his comments had made the controversy more troubling, insisting that the cleric should have demonstrated greater restraint as a religious leader.
In a strongly worded statement, Fani-Kayode said Jingir had done significant damage to the Muslim-Muslim political ticket he claimed to support by allegedly referring to Christians as infidels and questioning their place in Nigeria.
According to him, Christians who supported the Muslim-Muslim ticket in 2023 did not do so because they regarded Christianity as inferior to Islam.
“We did so because we believed that competence and not religion ought to be the guiding factor,” he said.
Fani-Kayode maintained that Christians and Muslims must be treated as equal citizens, arguing that religious affiliation should never determine an individual’s rights or place in the country.
“I am a Nigerian Christian and I deserve to be respected for who and what I am, just as every Nigerian Muslim deserves to be respected for who and what he is as well,” he said.
He also rejected what he described as Jingir’s alleged claim linking the Maitatsine sect to Christians, describing the assertion as “a lie from the pit of hell.”
Fani-Kayode said he had spoken with four Northern Muslim governors who, according to him, were disturbed by Jingir’s remarks, including one who attended the Kano event where the controversial comments were reportedly made.
The former minister, however, praised the Sultan of Sokoto for calling on Christians and Muslims to refrain from insulting one another.
He described the Sultan’s intervention as “fatherly counsel from a revered leader”, saying the position demonstrated the need for religious leaders to promote peace rather than division.
Fani-Kayode warned that Nigeria had reached a point where religious extremism and intolerance could no longer be treated casually.
“We must not cross the red line of religious extremism or intolerance because it diminishes us all as God-fearing Christians and Muslims who both believe in one God,” he said.
He further disclosed that he would not share a political platform or fellowship with Jingir, whom he accused of preaching hatred despite his position as a cleric.
Fani-Kayode said the controversy had caused considerable pain among Christians, particularly because Jingir had reportedly refused to express remorse.
He consequently appealed to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the Sultan of Sokoto to publicly caution the cleric.
Fani-Kayode warned that inflammatory religious rhetoric could undermine national unity and create deeper divisions between Nigeria’s two major faith communities.
“Jingir has done more harm to the Muslim-Muslim ticket that he claims to support than anything and anyone else,” he declared.