ADEGBITE'S DEATH: NIGERIA LOST A GEM

28th September, 2012 PRESS RELEASE: DEMISE OF DR ADEGBITE: NIGERIA HAS LOST A GEM   The sad death of Dr. Abdul Lateef Adegbite was announced this evening by the Ogun State Government. Dr. Adegbite was until his death the Secretary General of the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA) and the Seriki Musulumi of Egbaland. He was 79.   We of the Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) receive the news of his death with equanimity, submitting to the will of Allah since Islam teaches the philosophy of death as sine qua non. We commiserate with the government and good people of Ogun State, the President-General of the NSCIA Sultan Abubakar III, the Aare Musulumi of Yorubaland, Alhaji Abdul Azeez Arisekola Alao, the Nigerian Muslim Ummah, the Federal Government and the generality of Nigerian citizens.   Dr. Adegbite was the founding father of the Muslim Students Society of Nigeria (MSSN) in the early sixties. He also played a vital role in the establishment of the NSCIA in 1973.   He lived a life of devotion and piety. He promoted the golden qualities of religious tolerance and peaceful coexistence. Even at the peak of the worst crisis and irrational provocation, he never uttered an angry word. He worked assiduously for the progress of Nigeria. He was a great statesman, a patriot primus inter pareil, a lover of peace, a preacher of love and forgiveness and an exemplary leader.   Generous to a fault, Dr. Adegbite was a friend of the weak. He projected the enviable principles of non-violence and constructive dialogue. A team player nulli secundus, he steered the ship of the Muslim Ummah with the dexterity of an egg-vendor and the skill of a juggler simultaneously spinning several breakables in the air yet breaking none. Nigeria has lost a gem.   We pray that Allah in His Infinite Mercy will forgive him and repose his gentle soul in Al-Jannah Firdaws. Professor Is-haq Akintola,  Lagos State University, P.O. Box 10211, LASU Post Office, HO 102 101, Ojo, Lagos, Nigeria. Tel. 234-803-346-4974        234-818-211-9714 Website: www.ishaqakintola.com Blog: drishaqakintola.blogspot.com Twitter:  ishaqakintola Facebook: facebook.com/ishaqakintola Twitter: ishaqakintola   I remain oppressed untill the hungry are fed, the naked clothed, the sick healed and the homeless sheltered