By Nathaniel Zacchaeus, Abuja
The Christian Organisations of Nigeria (CON), has urged senators-elect to vote for Abdul-Aziz Yari as President of the 10th Senate on June 13 because he was the most capable among the aspirants.
The CON stated this at a news conference addressed by Bishop (Prophet) Blessing Fashola of the Celestial Church of Christ (CCC).
The group said it accepted the decision of the senators-elect to reject the All Progressives Congress (APC) endorsement and to vote according to their conscience.
The Bishop said, “The Christian Organisation of Nigeria (CON) is calling on the senators-elect to discountenance miscreants and enemies of democracy trying to use politics and religion to discourage them from voting Yari as the next Senate President.
“The hollowed Chambers of the Senate is where Nigeria must speak as one united and indivisible entity hence every religious, ethnic, and racial divisions must be highly discouraged.
“After a critical assessment of all the contestants irrespective of their religious divide we have chosen to endorse H.E Abdul-Aziz Yari because he is the most capable.
“CON is apolitical and does not share the myopic reasoning that a Christian must be endorsed because we do not see any Christian from the lot contesting that is more capable than Sen Yari.”
The Christian body pointed out that the 10th Nigerian Senate was not a place where cheap religious sentiments could fly, hence propaganda machinery deployed to hoodwink senators-elect into supporting a failed project is dead on arrival.
“The Christian Organisation of Nigeria (CON) calls on the senators-elect to jettison any such endorsements.
“Nigeria is our common patrimony and we must all rise to endorse only candidates who have not sold their souls.
“We are passing a vote of confidence in the ambition of Abdul-Aziz Yari to become the next president of the Senate.
“It must be stated that given the peculiarities of time, the need to have leaders with experience and the capacity to hit the ground running should be emphasized in this current dispensation.
“This much has been the trademark of Yari, hence our endorsement of his aspiration, which represents the country’s best interest in this critical time of our existence,”
The Christian body said that Yari was one of the notable nationalists, who has displayed administrative competence and commitment to the country’s socioeconomic development.
The group said that he has always put the country’s interest at heart in all his endeavours.
The Christian leaders added that Yari had earned for himself, tremendous respect across the country and an attribute he will put to good use if elected as Senate President.
The CON said, “We must admit that what the country needs at this point is leaders with capacity regardless of ethnic and religious affiliations. Nigeria needs leaders that understand the dynamic nature of the country, which can only be brought about through hands-on experience in governance.
“Senator Yari’s credentials speak volumes of a man on a mission to contribute to sustainable growth and development. He has demonstrated competence and capacity and has built bridges across the divide.
“Abdul-Aziz Yari is one of the few Nigerian leaders preaching religious and ethnic tolerance. He is a firm believer in One Nigeria. This much has defined his approach to issues that have assisted in bringing about peace and tranquillity across the country.
“It’s our candid opinion that the leadership of the APC should allow the North West Zone to provide the post of the senate president because the zone gave more than 30% of the winning votes to President Bola Tinubu during the election,” CON said.
