Remi Tinubu, the first lady, has written about thechallenges she faced within her local church following her husband’s decisionto run on a Muslim-Muslim presidential ticket in the 2023 election. Remi was ordained pastor of the Redeemed Christian Church ofGod (RCCG), one of Nigeria’s largest pentecostal denominations, in 2018. Punch newspaper reports that in her new memoir, ‘The Journeyof Grace: Giving Thanks in All Things’, the first lady described the episode asa “bitter pill” that caused division in her parish and tested her faith. The 52-page book, released to mark her 65th birthday,chronicled events from 2021 to 2025, and included a foreword by FolashadeOlukoya, wife of the general overseer of the Mountain of Fire and MiraclesMinistries. Oluremi recalled how the decision to field a Muslim-Muslimticket by the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) reignited sensitivereligious debates in Nigeria. She said despite being a Christian, her faith did not deterher husband’s choice, but it did split her church. “We kept moving forward with hope in God, and each campaignwas interesting despite the fact that all the odds were stacked against him,”she recounted. “One of such decisions was the unpopular ‘Muslim/Muslimticket’. My being a Christian did not matter. My local assembly, RedeemedChristian Church of God, was split.” The former senator also recounted her 2011 senatorialcampaign, saying her political posters were rejected by the church. “I later realised that we are a church like other churcheswith members of all political parties in attendance,” she wrote. “I experienced this during my campaign in 2011 for thesenate, when I took my campaign posters to the church, and it was rebuffed.After that, I never tried again,” she added. Remi said while some parishioners showed hostility, manyelders and members offered prayers and support, helping her to remain steadfastin her faith. She said despite the animosity, she never changed her placeof worship and credited her spiritual growth to the experience. “But I kept attending church, and I thank God I have grownfrom being a baby to a mature Christian,” she wrote. “So the little resentment I witnessed from a few was metwith the peace of God. All the same, despite a few who showed hostility, manywere encouraging, especially our elders, who would encourage me from time totime with prayers. “To this end, I am grateful to God and everyone of them,especially those of them who lived to watch the presidential inauguration whenthe time came. I thank the pastorate also for making arrangements for them. “I thank my local assembly because most of them made me feelwelcome and comfortable enough to come to church whenever I was home fromAbuja, where I was still serving as a senator representing Lagos centralsenatorial district.” ‘ONLY GOD REWARDS, NOT MAN’ Remi also claimed that some of her husband’s allies desertedhim when he decided to pursue the presidency after more than 14 years ofcontemplation. She said she has forgiven those who betrayed her husbandduring the electioneering campaign, adding that she has chosen peace overbitterness. “He had mused on the idea for over 14 years, and this waswhere we arrived at a crossroads. Most people I thought would support the ideabecause of past relationships were not forthcoming,” she wrote. “After consulting with some of his political allies, he wasset to give it a shot. The decision now rested on him to go on or not to. A lotof consultations began. “Some were favourable, while others were neither here northere. Some said no indirectly, while others would rather want to see theoutcome before taking a position. “I realised that whatever good you do in life, it is onlyGod who rewards you and not man. I do not have anything against anyone... thequestion is how did I not feel the betrayal anymore? I knew the grace factorwas evident, and the Holy Spirit continually comforted me.”
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