Inside politicians, clerics ‘unholy alliances’

The phenomenon of religious politics in Nigeria is an obvious one. In political aspects such as style of governance, policy formulations, and the electoral process in Nigeria, religion has been a strong determining factor – Ikenna L. Umeanolue   Contrary to the submission that Nigeria remains a secular state, it has become increasingly difficult to […]

The phenomenon of religious politics in Nigeria is an obvious one. In political aspects such as style of governance, policy formulations, and the electoral process in Nigeria, religion has been a strong determining factor – Ikenna L. Umeanolue

 

Contrary to the submission that Nigeria remains a secular state, it has become increasingly difficult to separate religion from governance.

Since 1999, when Nigeria returned to democratic rule after several years of hiatus, politicians and religious leaders have established a symbiotic relationship. For many political actors, mosques, churches, and other religious centres and gatherings have become veritable campaign grounds.

While most of the religious clerics used the politicians to have access to money and fame, the latter explored the relationship to become very powerful and influential in the country’s political power game, with the overall goal of getting elective positions and/or perpetuating themselves in power.

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Across the country, towering religious figures with massive followings from the Muslim and Christian faiths wield enormous influence on their followers. As a result, the politicians have turned their centres into a mecca of sorts, with regular visits in the guise of seeking prayers, especially during election circles.

The politicians, subsequently, used such opportunities to have access to a sizable number of the electorates through their spiritual leaders in the quest to assume political power, not oblivious to the influence of the religious leaders in shaping the opinions of the followers because of the ‘celestial’ authority they hold over them.

The clerics’ body language, subtle disposition, and, most recently, outright endorsement or criticism during election circles ultimately influence the electoral choices of their congregants.

Such observations have led politicians to increasingly court religious figures openly or through proxies for political fame and power. And depending on the dominant religion in the area, many political leaders, past and present, including governors and presidents, have turned sacred religious rituals like pilgrimage into a jamboree in the media space in an attempt to woo supporters and penetrate religious circles and leaders.

In the past, influential religious leaders and clerics sometimes went beyond using their influence to mobilise their congregation in the collection of their PVCs. Church pulpits and mosque minbars, especially in the 2023 general election, were unapologetically deployed to command followers to vote for a particular candidate or party in many instances.

The situation peaked when many of the sermons and Khutbas coming out from the religious centres and screens either became a prophecy in the case of some churches about the divine mandate for a particular candidate to rule or, in some Muslim circles, the party to vote for and why. Interestingly, many of the religious predictions turned out to be false.

 

Cult followership

In northern Nigeria, adherents of sects like the Tijaniyya, who consider Sheikh Dahiru Usman as their supreme leader; the Qadiriyya Movement in Africa, with Sheikh Nasir Kabara as its leader; and followers of prominent clerics like Sheikh Kabiru Haruna Gombe and Sheikh Ahmed Gumi, among others, look forward to pronouncements from their scholars whose words are considered law before deciding on their political choices.

In the southwest and parts of north central Nigeria, religious societies like Ansar-Ud-Deen, Ansarul Islam, Markaz, the Muslim Congress (TMC), the Muslim Ummah of South West Nigeria (MUSWEN), and senior Islamic scholars like Sheikh Dhikrullahi Shafii, Sheikh AbdulMajeed Eleha, Sheikh AbdulRazaq Alaro, and Sheik AbdulRahman Ahmad, among other influential groups and figures, have used their religious platforms and circles to mobilise their followers towards electoral participation.

On the Christian side, the exploits of highly respected religious personalities like the outspoken Father Ejike Mbaka of the Adoration Ministry, Pastor Enoch Adeboye of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), Chris Oyakhilome of the Christ Embassy, David Oyedepo of the Living Faith Ministries (Winners Chapel), Pastor Tunde Bakare, and former presidential candidate Rev. Chris Okotie, among others, have been very instructive.

Most of them have used their Roman Catholic, Pentecostal, and protestant ministries to rally their massive followers in the South East, South-South, and South West geopolitical zones towards their political preferences, overtly or covertly.

 

Return to drawing board

Since the birth of the fourth republic, the 2023 general elections, especially the presidential contest, have been regarded arguably as the most divisive along religious and ethnic lines in Nigeria’s democratic journey. To underscore the import of the religious influence that played out during the political process, observers believed that a handful of the frontline political actors who got their fingers burned trying to play the religious and ethnic cards to get to power during the last presidential election have returned to the drawing board early to either consolidate or avoid the banana peel for the 2027 elections, depending on the side of the scale they found themselves on.

For instance, the Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, is believed to have launched a rebranding campaign in the Muslim-dominated northern part of the country ahead of the 2027 contest. His iftar (breaking of fast) with the Muslims during the last Ramadan and other social activities and monetary donations in the region are believed to be a calculative and deliberate strategy to curry favour from religious leaders and other quarters towards the realisation of his presidential ambition come 2027.

Obi’s supporters believe that aside from the alleged electoral malfeasance, the former governor of Anambra State, a Catholic, lost the 2023 presidential election when he failed to galvanise the largely Muslim north and their influential religious leaders to buy into his candidacy.

For the All Progressives Congress (APC), the Muslim-Muslim ticket propounded by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu as the party’s candidate in 2023, which almost collapsed the political space, survived largely on the strength of the massive support secured from hundreds of religious leaders, who convinced their followers of the ‘blessings’ the ticket will bring for the religion and also the ethnic and regional sentiments that worked for him in the south-west states.

The president’s foot soldiers in the north, who courted and feted popular Muslim scholars in the region during the build-up to the 2023 election appear to have started scrambling for votes again along a similar path in earnest.

For the PDP presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, many believe that his major albatross along religious lines is his inability to shake off the toga of a liberal Muslim that has failed to endear him to his largely Muslim North. But political analysts believe the Obi-tsunami, which cost him the hitherto secured South-South and South-East votes, as well as the damaging effect of the Nyesom Wike-led G5 conundrum, dealt a more fatal blow to his ambition.

As the former vice president prepares to take another shot at the presidency that many political watchers believe will probably be his last, the religious question might become another albatross if not well articulated.

 

Unholy alliance?

For many political analysts, the symbiotic relationship between religion and politics in the country’s polity and their continued influence have not led to a commensurate improvement in governance and a demand for accountability. If anything, it has left the nation far worse, as only a few people, majorly the politicians and the clerics, benefit to the detriment of good governance in the country.

According to a former Chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Kwara State, Professor Timothy Opoola, the problem is that oftentimes, the politicians forget or deliberately ignore the advice of the clerics when they get to power.

To him, religious leaders, with their influence, have a great role to play in the development of the nation by ensuring that the right people get to power.

“Nothing good has come out of their frolicking with imams and pastors. What is important is the politician’s relationship with God.

“I would advise clerics to stop endorsing politicians anyhow, but look at their character, morals, and religious qualities. They should know that power belongs to God, and only He has the final say, no matter the endorsements,” he said.

On his part, the Chief Imam of Radio Kwara, Imam AbdulSalam Olayiwola, noted that there is nothing wrong with politicians canvassing for votes from religious centres or societies. However, the problem is the non-fulfilment of their promises, which amounts to playing people with the name of God.

“While they should restrict their campaigns to the streets and town halls, this issue goes beyond patronising worship centres. As clerics, we should let them know the implications and dangers of misleading people in the name of faith. Religion should not only be a path to political power but also a torchlight when they get there,” he said.