This religious hypocrisy will destroy Nigeria before any politician does

Bashir Ahmad has finally said what many of us have been thinking since this Sheikh Jingir matter blew up. When the Islamic cleric referred to Christians as infidels and claimed Nigeria belongs to Muslims, everybody rushed to condemn him. But when Bashir reminded us that Rev. Ezekiel Dachomo has said things that are even worse, the silence was deafening. He wrote on X, "It is not a competition, Rufai, but I can tell you that Rev. Ezekiel Dachomo has said things that were even worse. Both utterances are wrong."

I grew up in Abeokuta where my father used to say, "Bi o ba ti ri, enu ni a fi n gbọ́" meaning we hear things as they are spoken. But this is not about who said the worse thing. This is about a nation where we have normalised religious bigotry as long as it comes from your own side. Rufai Oseni asked on Tuesday what the reaction would have been if a Christian cleric had said what Jingir said. We all know the answer. There would have been protests, arrests, maybe even church burnings. But when it is a Muslim cleric, we call for dialogue and understanding.

I am a Christian woman and I will be the first to say Rev. Dachomo's alleged comments are unacceptable. But I also know that Sheikh Jingir's words are equally dangerous. The problem is that we have turned faith into a weapon for political power. The APC fielded a Muslim-Muslim ticket and now religious leaders are being used to justify it. Nobody is talking about competence or integrity. Just numbers. Just votes. Be honest, if your own religious leader said something hateful tomorrow, would you condemn it as loudly as you condemn the other side?