From Romanus Ugwu, Abuja
Former All Progressives Congress (APC), National Vice Chairman (South South), Hilliard Eta, on Tuesday, accused Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) of acting like the religious wing of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
In a chat with newsmen at the party’s national secretariat in Abuja, Eta, who once acted at APC’s National Chairman, equally urged CAN to stay away from politics.
He frowned at CAN’s antagonistic posture over APC’s Muslim-Muslim presidential ticket for next year’s poll, faulting the notions held in some quarters that the single faith ticket was part of the subterranean plot to Islamise Nigeria.
He equally maintained that CAN lacks the moral high ground to protect the interests of christains in the country, adding: “Politics is different from the pulpit. And the pulpit should not be used to confuse the people of Nigeria. I am a Christian and I am not satisfied with Christendom in Nigeria.
“It has something to do with what the Muslims are doing. It has more to do with what the pastors are doing. The pastors should question themselves why people are leaving christainity.
“When you fly in an aeroplane with monies of people who are trecking, when you build universities from the sweat of mothers who cannot pay the fees of their wards, then you know why people are leaving christaindom.
“I have been in Abuja since 2014. I have alot of Muslim friends. At no time did any of my Muslim friends even invite me to the mosque let alone speak about me leaving my religion.
“But, if I leave my religion today it would be on account of what the pastors are doing which is miracle for naira, prophesies for millions and speaking from both sides of their mouths. So, these are some of the things we must question in Christianity not to bring christainity into politics.
“I need to say this. CAN is the religious wing of the PDP. It has been so established and we have reasons to say so because the sitting Vice President today is a pastor of the Redeemed Christian church of God.
“Yet CAN did not support him in 2019. He was on the ballot in 2015 they did not support him. They supported Atiku Abubakar who is a Muslim because CAN is beholden to the PDP.
“Before this Muslim-Muslim joint ticket matter cropped up, we in the South said that the presidency should come to the South whether in PDP or in APC. Now the PDP did their primary first and a Fulani Muslim became their candidate, why did this CAN not speak against that ticket?
“All of a sudden CAN now found its voice the moment the APC selected Sen Shettima as our vice presidential candidate. Let me also say here that before Sen Shettima was picked, we had one Ibrahim Masari on the ticket.
“It did not bother them. Do you know why Shettima is bothering them? It is because we know that with Shettima we have locked up the North East geopolitical zone . It’s a political matter, we want to win this election,” Eta noted.