IPOB ATTACK ON HAUSA & YORUBA MOSQUE: ARMY SHOULD PROTECT MUSLIMS IN THE SOUTH EAST

17^th September, 2017

WORLD PRESS RELEASE:

IPOB ATTACK ON HAUSA & YORUBA MOSQUE: ARMY SHOULD PROTECT MUSLIMS IN THE SOUTH EAST

Terrorists of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) shot five innocent Hausa men dead at an Hausa settlement near the popular Abraka Market in Asaba, Delta State, on Friday, 15^th September, 2017. Scores of others were injured. In another attack, an irate IPOB mob attacked the Yoruba Mosque in Umuahia, Abia State. The marauding hoodlums destroyed the mosque, tore copies of the Glorious Qur’an and defecated inside the mosque. Some Yoruba Muslims caught up in the mayhem were manhandled and robbed of their laptops and handsets.

The Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) strongly condemns these attacks. It is wicked, cowardly, unjustifiable and psychopathically sadistic.

It is well known that most Northerners who live in the South East and South West are poor citizens who engage in menial works like shoe-mending, shoe-shining, gate-keepers, etc. What crime has this poor and innocent class committed to warrant such a deadly attack? They are neither politicians nor civil servants.

MURIC asserts that these gruesome attacks are a direct product of hate speeches delivered by Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of the proscribed terrorist group, IPOB. Kanu has allegedly berated Yoruba ‘bastards’ and their leaders and pronounced the death sentence on every Nigerian living in the ‘Nigerian zoo’. It is not surprising, therefore, that IPOB terrorists have started killing innocent Hausa people and attacking Yoruba mosques. Objective and pragmatic leaders of thought in the South East should prevail on Kanu and IPOB members to stop their terrorist activities henceforth.

We are irked by the silence of Yoruba leaders on IPOB’s attack on the Yoruba mosque. Are Yoruba Muslims no longer part of the Yoruba nation? Are they not the majority group in the South West? Are the elitist Yoruba leaders still bent on marginalizing the majority Yorubas in their midst just because the Muslims are not vocal?

MURIC demands proper prosecution of the two IPOB members arrested in connection with the terrorist act. We implore the Delta Police Command to fish out their accomplices. The law must take its due course.

We task IPOB apologists, particularly constitutional lawyers who are trying hard to fault the Nigerian Army’s declaration of IPOB as a terrorist organization, to tell the world the correct name for a group which sprays innocent and unarmed citizens with bullets without stealing anything from them. What do you call a group that razes down police stations and kills the police at will? Any group which engages in threats and violence to call attention to its cause is a terrorist group. No more, no less.

Today was born from the wombs of yesterday. It is on record that IPOB threatened President Buhari when he wanted to visit Enugu. They said that he should not set his feet on Igboland. That threat has become a reference point by legally minded people. To avoid a clash and the likely loss of lives, the president sent his vice, Professor Yemi Osinbajo. No country in the world takes threat to the life of its president lightly.

According to Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions, anyone who parades a private army has become an enemy combatant. No military worth its salt will stomach that. We also remind apologists that human rights lose its numero uno status once national security is under threat (ref Dokubo-Asari V. Federal Republic of Nigeria 2007 ALL FWLR PT 375 588). We therefore plead with separatist ideologues to desist from misleading the people.

While MURIC is not averse to the idea of any group demanding its rights, we will not take kindly to attacks on Muslims and our places of worship. We do not issue threats. Neither do we engage in violence. Our motto is ‘Dialogue, Not Violence’ and we will stick to our pacifist vow to the end. But we will not hesitate to seek redress for any act of aggression committed against Muslims. All legitimate options are on the table. We will pursue those who oppress and persecute Muslims to the highest court in the world.

We commend the Nigerian Army not only for responding swiftly to the threat against the territorial integrity of the Nigerian nation but also for conducting itself professionally. No army in the world will tolerate hoodlums blocking its movement on a public road and pelting it with stones like IPOB members did. Those calling for the withdrawal of the army from Abia State are not being realistic. It is another ploy for IPOB to dig in, kill all Hausas and Yorubas and make it impossible for the army to return except at the commencement of full-blown war. We don’t want any war. All we want is peace. The army did a good job by intervening at the right time.

It is clear that the police cannot handle IPOB. Even the IPOB leader claimed that they already have weapons. We all saw video clips showing how members of IPOB harassed and taunted policemen. What did the apologists do at that time? Did they call IPOB to order? Any withdrawal by the military at this point in time will endanger the lives of innocent non-indigenes.

We appeal to the international community to avail itself with video clips containing hate speeches of the leader of IPOB before rushing to judgement. Hate speeches by Nnamdi Kanu has started taking effect. IPOB has started killing Muslims. Our mosques are being attacked and desecrated. Kanu himself is on the run. But he can only run, he cannot hide.

We appeal to Muslims in and outside the South East sub-region not to take the law into their hands. Two wrongs do not make a right. We advise disgruntled groups to channel their grievances through their state governors. The Federal Government should, as a matter of urgency, set up a commission to dialogue with such groups. However, we reject the idea of a meeting between President Buhari and the IPOB leader as this will bestow a false illusion of officialdom and encourage lawlessness among other groups. Idolisation of criminality in itself is a crime.

As a final shot, we affirm that every Nigerian has the right to live and work anywhere in the country. We therefore appeal to the military to remain palpably visible in the South East until all threats to peace and orderliness have been brought under control. This is necessary in order to protect the lives and properties of minority groups.

Professor Ishaq Akintola,
President,
Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC)

DON’T RETALIATE, DON’T SPREAD HATRED, ESCHEW VIOLENCE

15^th September, 2017

PRESS RELEASE:

DON’T RETALIATE, DON’T SPREAD HATRED, ESCHEW VIOLENCE  

There were reports of attacks on minority ethnicities in some parts of the country yesterday as a result of actions being taken by Nigerian security agencies against separatists and agitators in the South Eastern part of the country.        

The Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) is irked by this ugly development. We condemn all acts of violence against fellow Nigerians. It is unhealthy. It is barbaric.

We strongly suspect that some unpatriotic elements are bent on destroying the good work of the Buhari administration. Having discovered that their sophisticated plot to eliminate the president failed woefully, they have decided to create tension and escalate violence to a level where there is chaos everywhere. Their Mephistophelean desire is to necessitate a forceful change of government. We must not fall into their trap. Let us stoop to conquer.

MURIC therefore appeals for calm everywhere. We appeal to Nigerians particularly Northerners to refrain from retaliatory attacks on non-indigenes in their midst. We must not play into the hands of rebellious subjects and enemies of peace.

Instead of attacking non-indigenes among us, let us form a ring around them. Let us assure them of full protection by our communities. Let us also create a solid police-community relationship for special protection for non-indigenes in all states.

Traditional rulers are implored to follow the example of the Sultan of Sokoto who boldly told Northerners to attack him first before attacking Igbos. The Emir of Katsina has also displayed exemplary leadership and rare patriotism by assuring non-indigenes of their safety. We expect no less from traditional rulers in the South East and South South.

We must chart the course of peace if we do not want to see Nigerians between the ages of fourteen and forty five carrying guns. We must sue for peace if we do not want our daughters and wives raped in our presence. Peace is the only choice before us if we do not want our children orphaned, 10% of them killed and a large majority of vulnerable people exposed to famine.

We all saw how Rwanda children and women became refugees. Sierra Leone has not fully recovered from the ravages of war. Liberia is a shadow of its old self. We will create the world’s worst refugee crisis if we allow this violence to escalate. No African country can help Nigeria because we are the big brother and the rest of the world will only laugh at us for messing up the golden opportunity which the Buhari administration gave us.

The Glorious Qur’an warns against vengeance and assures us that former enemies can become our best friends. It therefore urges us to ignore those who perpetrate evil by being kind to them (Qur’an 41:34). In the same vein, the Bible implores believers to forgive and makes forgiveness a proviso for receiving God’s own forgiveness (Mathew 6:14).

Both Christians and Muslims in this country must not allow the rest of the world to mock us. The world will ask, “Why are there so many churches and so many mosques in their country if they cannot follow the teachings of love, tolerance and forgiveness in their scriptures?” The world will call us hypocrites and they will be right. We must not allow this to happen.

Finally, we call on governors, traditional rulers and community leaders to speak up against retaliation, violence and hate speech. The time to do that is now. Let us remember Haile Selassie’s warning, "Throughout history, it has been the inaction of those who could have acted, the indifference of those who should have known better, the silence of the voice of justice when it mattered most, that has made it possible for evil to triumph."

Professor Ishaq Akintola,
President,
Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC)

SENATE SHOULD LEAVE SAGAY ALONE

11^th September, 2017

PRESS RELEASE:

SENATE SHOULD LEAVE SAGAY ALONE  

The Nigerian Senate two days ago berated Professor Itsay Sagay, chairman of the Presidential Action Committee on Anti-Corruption (PACAC), for spreading falsehood and hate speech against it. The Red Chamber therefore called on President Muhammadu Buhari to rein in the PACAC Chairman.

The Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) believes that Senate is beating about the bush. It should face the business of legislation, stop all distractions and digressions and leave Professor Itsay Sagay alone.

Nigerians have noticed Senate’s unwillingness to join the fight against corruption from inception. We refuse to be hoodwinked. We have not forgotten how Senate attempted to buy immunity from prosecution for its members until public outcry forced it to withdraw the obnoxious, anti-people and corruption-laden bill.

Nigerians also know the history of this eighth Senate. The masses know the subterfuge, the hanky-panky and the pseudo-coup that preceded its inauguration. This segment of Nigeria’s political history has not fallen victim of the general amnesia.

Senate cites its passing of the Whistle Blowers’ Protection Bill, Witness Protection Bill, Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters Bill and the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Agency Bill as evidence of its support for the current war against corruption but fails to tell the world the time these bills were passed. Tell us the dates if, indeed, you are sincere. We put it to Senate that those bills were passed belatedly after prolonged delays.

If it is true that Senate is actively supporting the war against corruption, why is it that the same Senate is always at loggerheads with the two principal dramatis personae in the anti-graft war, namely, Ibrahim Magu, chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and Professor Sagay who is the Chairman of the Presidential Action Committee on Anti-Corruption (PACAC).

These are the two main agencies saddled with the prosecution, strategisation and conceptualization of the war against graft and Senate has never seen eye to eye with them. Something is wrong here. Who is deceiving who? Who has something to hide? Does Senate think Nigerians have no sense of perception? Who will have a field day if police is shut out of circulation? We all know the answer.

Senate once summoned Sagay in order to tongue-lash him though the no-nonsense professor called Senate’s bluff. The same Senate has repeatedly refused to confirm Magu as EFCC chairman. Senate followed up with threat that no presidential nominee will be confirmed unless Magu was sacked. Senate leaves no one in doubt about its body language. Nigerians have since concluded that Senate is serving the interest of its members who have pending corruption cases.

Or can Senate deny that many of its members, particularly former governors, have pending corruption cases? Who is prosecuting those cases? Who has the files? Is it not EFCC under the same Magu? So how will Senate confirm an uncompromising EFCC chairman. Logical, isn’t it? Sagay coordinates the intellectual engine room of the war against corruption. This alone is his crime and for this Senate wants him crucified. We will not stand akimbo watching the elimination of the few good ones…

As we round up, we urge Mr. President to ignore Senate’s complaints about Sagay. We affirm full confidence in Professor Itsay Sagay. Senate should just leave him alone. Like President Buhari, Sagay built up an unassailable reputation over the years and this cannot be rubbished by Nigeria’s lawmakers. We advise Senate to squarely face its legislative duty and stop perambulating.

Professor Ishaq Akintola,
President,
Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC)

FAYOSE COMMITTED SACRILEDGE ON ID GROUND

5^th September, 2017

PRESS RELEASE:

FAYOSE COMMITTED SACRILEDGE ON ID GROUND  

The Governor of Ekiti State, Ayodele Fayose, appeared on Id ground dressed in Islamic regalia including a turban on Friday, 1^st September, 2017. Mr. Fayose also delivered a politically motivated speech at the Id ground.       

The Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) strongly condemns Fayose’s action. It is executive hocus pocus, highly sacriledgious and unduely provocative. It is Act I, Scene I in the Theater of the Absurd.

Governor Fayose cannot pretend to be a friend of Ekiti Muslims. He has delivered several anti-Muslim speeches and uttered several hate pronouncements targeted at Nigerian Muslims. His general attitude and body language to Muslims of Ekiti belie his status as the state governor. He has also demolished mosques out of sheer desire to eliminate all Islamic landmarks from Ekiti. So who is Fayose deceiving?

The fact that he offered advice concerning who Muslims should vote for in the coming Ekiti 2018 election in his speech at the Id ground reveals Fayose’s real motive. But that is his undoing. Delivering a political speech in a serene atmosphere and on a sacred ground is sacriledgious. Fayose has also politicized religion. Who are Fayose’s advisers for Allah’s sake? Or is it that he does not listen to them? It is most likely that he doesn’t listen to anyone.

Like every bully, Fayose acts on instinct. He tries to think later though. Fayose has abused the turban and arrogantly violated Islamic wardrobe etiquette. It is an insult for him to have so boldly dressed himself up like an Imam on Id ground. Only a titled Muslim leader or an Islamic scholar can dress like that. Fayose has failed to respect a major Islamic decorum. Can any political leader put on a pastor’s cassock and clerical collar without causing uproar?

Fayose has shown that he has no respect for Muslims or their religion. He derides Ekiti Muslims yet he tries to con them to vote for his party. This attempt to ridicule Islam reminds us of the words of Prophet Nuh (peace be upon him) to those who mocked him, “If you mock us now, we will soon ridicule you and very soon you will know on whom shame and punishment will descend” (Qur’an 11: 38-39).

Traditionally, non-Muslim governors and kings (Obas and Obis) are visited by Muslims on their way from the Id ground. Only those who are Muslims among the governors and kings appear at the Id ground. Fayose’s appearance at the Ekiti Id ground has violated all known norms. He has desecrated our holy grounds.

On a final and very serious note, we suggest that in view of our experience in the Third Republic, it has become necessary, from now onward, for the electorate to demand certificate of psychiatric examination from candidates seeking political offices.

Professor Ishaq Akintola,
President,
Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC)