Wednesday, May 31, 2023

DON’T MAKE MUSLIMS SACRIFICIAL LAMBS IN APPOINTMENTS : MURIC TELLS TINUBU, SHETTIMA

 


1st June, 2023

PRESS RELEASE:

DON’T MAKE MUSLIMS SACRIFICIAL LAMBS IN APPOINTMENTS : MURIC TELLS TINUBU, SHETTIMA 

 

An Islamic human rights organisation, the Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC), has reacted to reports that the new Vice President, Kashim Shettima, gave his first two appointments to two Christians from the North and South East. The group warned that President Tinubu and his vice should not make Muslims sacrificial lambs in matters of appointment.

 

 

This was made known in a press release issued on Thursday, 1st June, 2023 by the group’s Executive Director, Professor Ishaq Akintola.

 

He said :

 

“There are reports that Vice President Kashim Shettima has given his first two appointments to two Christians. He made an Igbo man, a Catholic, his Chief Security Officer (CSO). Next, he gave another Christian from the North Central, the post of Aide-de-Camp (ADC). But he gave Muslims nothing.

 

 

“These are two very sensitive positions, in fact the most sensitive posts in the office of a top government official and the Vice President has elected to entrust them to Christians.

 

“We can understand the Vice President’s body language. He is eager to prove that he has nothing to hide. Again, the fact that he made a pronouncement after the appointments to the effect that he has no Islamisation agenda explains it all. The VP is afraid of being accused of pursuing an Islamisation agenda. He has behaved like a man boxed to a corner. No doubt this is the result of consolidated blackmail.

 

 

“The development gives us serious cause for concern. Muslims have started asking questions since the appointments: are we not in for another round of marginalisation since Muslim leaders have already started succumbing to blackmail so early?

 

 

The ears of MURIC are very close to the ground. We are close to the Muslims. We get reports from all the geo-political zones. This is what Muslims are saying already about the first appointments that were made. The VP can find out by himself since he is close to them too. We hope he will not be given recycled, sycophantic and brummagem reports.  

 

 

“Therefore to the new Vice President we have this to say: ‘This is your first act of injustice to Nigerian Muslims. You gave your first two appointments to Christians. Where is that of Muslims? Had you shared those two appointments between Christians and Muslims had been acceptable, but you bent over backwards to please your blackmailers thereby depriving Muslims who are already marginalized but who, characteristically, will not tell lies or blackmail to get what they do not deserve.’

 

 

“’Is it because they are good at making noise after committing wrong? Is it because they have perfected the art of the best form of defence is attack? Is it because they control the press? Verily verily we say unto thee oh Vice President, this is your first act of injustice to the Muslims.

 

 

“One of those two posts should have gone to a Muslim. Muslims are also human beings. They are affected by the economic crunch more than any other group. Muslims are at the bottom of the pyramid of poverty in this country. Every single appointment in any family reduces poverty in that family. Muslim families matter. Tank you for reducing poverty level in two Christian families while you tell hungry, famished Muslims to wait.’

 

 

“It is true that appointments must reflect competence. But it is equally true that it must also mirror the reality on the ground. Interestingly enough, the reality on ground is that Muslims are an overwhelming majority in this country today. MURIC did not say that. The presidential election held on 25th February, 2023 said so.

 

“In that historic election, Muslim votes were split among four Muslim presidential candidates (Ahmed Tinubu, Atiku Abubakar, Ahmed Datti and Abdul-Lateef Kola Abiola). Christians, except a few, voted massively for Peter Obi. Yet Ahmed Tinubu won. It is a strong demographic declaration vis-à-vis the population strength of Christians and Muslims in Nigeria.

 

 

“The Kaduna scenario is another good example. A minority Christian group based in Southern Kaduna had been arrogating to themselves the right to leadership until ex-Governor Nasir El-Rufai taught them the lesson of their lives. El-Rufai simply called their bluff by going for a Muslim-Muslim ticket. He has won twice. Those who were promoting their false propaganda promptly shut up.

 

 

“Why then should the Christians take the lion share of the dividends of democracy if they are not the majority? Why should the Muslims work like elephants but receive the share of ants? It is still too early to forget how former President Muhammadu Buhari was hounded, intimidated and embarrassed from dusk to dawn with false allegations of Islamisation and fulanisation whereas his accusers were busy actively perpetrating, perfecting and perpetuating Christianisation and Afeniferisation.

 

 

“They accused Buhari of appointing Muslims only in his cabinet. The cacophony of noise and vitriolic attacks over this were so massively coordinated that the sky above Nigeria almost crashed until the Christian vice president came up to show how the number of ministers was equally shared between Christians and Muslims.

 

 

“Yet these same people went on sabbatical when MURIC was complaining about Ekiti State where a Christian governor, Ayodele Fayose, ran an all-Christian administration with all the fourteen commissioners, all chairmen of boards and agencies were Christians and the only Muslim appointed was the chairman of the Muslim Pilgrims Board.

 

 

“The same people were not on planet Jupiter when MURIC was complaining about ex-Taraba governor Darius Dickson Isyaku who appointed twelve permanent secretaries in November 2021 and all of them were Christians. Who does that?

 

 

“We affirm clearly, emphatically and unequivocally that Muslim-Muslim ticket is majority rule in Nigeria. It is what democracy teaches. Democracy is about majority having its way while minority has its say. But here we have been witnessing the tyranny of a vocal minority.

 

 

“We believe that justice resides in giving the Muslims what they deserve in terms of numbers and giving the Christians what they deserve in terms of numbers. If democracy is a game of numbers, Nigerian Muslim leaders cannot afford to be mindlessly generous to Christians to the detriment of Muslims for fear of being blackmailed by the former.

 

 

“They blackmail you but we voted for you. Who deserves your attention most? Remember that second term is payback time. Do not make the mistake of thinking 2027 is still far away. Allah says, ‘They see it as far away but we see it as near’ (Glorious Qur’an 70:6).

 

 

“The time to adjust is now. Don’t sacrifice majority for minority. It will be inhuman, inconsiderate, unfair and unjust. Nobody should tell us cock and bull stories about picking Christians only because they cannot find competent Muslims. The advent of the Pantamis, the Oloyedes, the Musa Bellos (former FCT minister) has demystified the myth of incompetence of Muslims.

 

 

“The workaholic and highly talented Professor Ali Isa Pantami executed 4,366 projects in the Ministry of Communications and Digital Planning just in four years. The ex-FCT minister is a silent achiever. He is transparent to a fault. Professor Ishaq Oloyede has dazzled the nation with his achievements in JAMB. Yet they are just a flash in the pan. Do not say you cannot find competent Muslims. Tell us another story.

 

 

“Of course we find it difficult to see how President Tinubu will bypass competent bona fide sons of the North when sharing cabinet positions. They stood by him in times of hardship. A case in point is that of El-Rufai. The eminently qualified Nasir El-Rufai traversed the length and breadth of Abuja shuttling between media houses and rubbishing the bunkum and balderdash falsely brandished by the cabal as naira redesign and fuel reallocation.

 

 

“El-Rufai put both his life and political career on the line and manifested uncommon courage and rare political acumen. Why won’t Mr. President pick such a gem as Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) or Chief of Staff (SGF)? This will just be in line with the rhetorical question in the Glorious Qur’an where it asks, ‘Is there any other reward for goodness other than goodness (Hal jazau al-ihsan ila al-ihsan Qur’an 55:60)?

 

 

“We know that Islamdom parades many young and competent, nay, versatile Muslims. All President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and his vice need to do is search in the appropriate places. Come to think of it. How did Obasanjo and Jonathan always go to the remotest parts of Muslim-dominated areas of Kwara, Borno, Kaduna, etc to fish out ministerial materials among the Christian minorities? If that is possible, how can it be impossible for Ahmed and Kashim to find ministerial materials from hitherto marginalized Muslim-dominated areas?

 

 

“We are not asking Tinubu and Shettima as Muslim president and vice president respectively to go on a revenge mission on behalf of Nigerian Muslims. But, like Fernan Caballero opined, ‘Be fair before being generous, be human before being fair.’

 

“You cannot be generous to Christians at the expense of Nigerian Muslims. Who is losing? Who is gaining? Who is the majority? Who voted for you? This time around, the landlords of Aso Rock must look upon Nigerian Muslims with eyes of kindness. This is not entitlement mentality. We Muslims are a people long deprived, long marginalized, long oppressed. It is time for liberation. It is our turn. Awa lo kan, and rightly so.

 

 

Our message to our Christian neighbours is exactly how Laone Collins puts it, ‘Remember: Let's look for ways to take care of each other rather than look for ways to take advantage of each other.’

 

 

“We should stop talking about sharing political posts equally, particularly now that it has become glaring that Muslims have a very comfortable majority. Any 50-50 sharing formular is monumental injustice to Muslims. It has gone on for too long. While it is good to be magnanimous in the sharing of appointments, it should not be at the detriment of competent Muslims. Neither President Bola Ahmed Tinubu nor Vice President Shettima should make Muslims sacrificial lambs.”

 

#MuslimFamiliesMatter  

#DontSacrificeMajorityForMinority

#MajorityMustHaveItsWay

#RememberPaybackTime

#Not50-50

 

 

Professor Ishaq Akintola, 

Executive Director,

Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC).

 

 

 

Tuesday, May 30, 2023

PRESS RELEASE: INAUGURATION: MURIC CONGRATULATES TINUBU, SHETTIMA

 


30th May, 2023

 

PRESS RELEASE:

INAUGURATION: MURIC CONGRATULATES TINUBU, SHETTIMA

 

A faith-based human rights organization, the Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC), has congratulated President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima for the successful inauguration which took place yesterday, Monday, 29th May, 2023. 

 

The message of congratulations was sent by the Executive Director of the organization, Professor Ishaq Akintola on Tuesday, 30th May, 2023. 

 

The message reads :

 

"We of the Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) congratulate President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima on their successful inauguration yesterday, Monday, 29th May, 2023 at the Eagle Square.

 

 

"We rejoice with the new president and his vice and share with them their moments of glory. 

 

 

"Even in the euphoria of victory, we charge the duo to be conscious of the onerous task ahead of them. Nigeria is a complex society, therefore, there is the need to reflect deeply and examine all angles before taking decisions. They should make good governance and life more abundant their primary goals.

 

 

"MURIC charges all Imams throughout Nigeria to initiate weekly prayers for both President Tinubu and his vice as well as our country, Nigeria, immediately after every Friday Jumu'ah sermon.

 

 

"Finally, we appeal to Nigerians in general to allow the new administration to settle down and  to cooperate with it in it's endeavour to improve the standard of living in the country".

 

#AsiwajuHasCome

 

Professor Ishaq Akintola, 

Executive Director,

Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC).

 

 

Saturday, May 27, 2023

BUHARI CAME, HE SAW, HE CONQUERED – MURIC

 


27th May, 2023

PRESS RELEASE:

BUHARI CAME, HE SAW, HE CONQUERED – MURIC 

 

President Muhammadu Buhari will be handing over power in the next 48 hours. The inauguration ceremonies of the next administration began about one week ago and will be rounded up at Eagle Square, Abuja, on Monday, 29th May, 2023. Meanwhile an Islamic human rights organisation, the Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC), has described the outgoing administration as a huge success.   

 

 

The declaration came via a statement issued on Saturday, 27th May, 2023 by the Executive Director of MURIC, Professor Ishaq Akintola.

 

He said :

 

“As President Muhammadu Buhari winds up his administration and prepares to hand over power on Monday, 29th May, 2023, we congratulate him and we thank Allah for his life. Although some Nigerians may not appreciate him at the moment, we have no iota of doubt that his legacy will endure. He is, indeed, the ‘Father of Modern Nigeria’.

 

 

“No Nigerian leader has gone through so much, yet he survived and achieved victory. A gassing conspiracy theory kept him on hospital bed for eight months, but still he ‘rose from the dead’ and toiled with all his strength to bequeath to Nigeria a lasting memorabilia.

 

 

“The most visible sign of his success today in the area of security is the absence of suicide bombers and the closure of many Internally Displaced People (IDP) camps. He subdued Boko Haram and ISWAP and transformed the Nigerian Army into the most deadly fighting machine on the continent of Africa through consistent funding and transparency.

 

 

“He completed several Macadam road projects and bridges around the country, particularly the Second Niger Bridge which was recently commissioned. Rail transportation, which was in comatose for more than forty years, has been revived. Nigeria also got a national airline, Nigeria Air, in the twilight of the administration. But his greatest asset is his incorruptibility. No single allegation of corruption was laid at his door throughout his eight-year rule.

 

 

“Like Julius Caesar wrote in his letter to the Roman Senate around 47 BC after he had achieved a quick victory in his short war against Pharnaces II of Pontus at the Battle of Zela (modern-day ZileTurkey), President Muhammadu Buhari can take the ‘last look at the Moor’, beat his chest and say, “Veni, vidi, vici” (i.e. I came, I saw, I conquered).”

 

#FarewellMuhammaduBuhari 

#ThePresidentWhoRoseFromTheDead

#BuhariTheIncorruptible

 

 

Professor Ishaq Akintola,

Executive Director,

Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC)

 

 

Friday, May 26, 2023

MURIC SUPPORTS MINISTER ADAMU ON REMOVAL OF SEX EDUCATION FROM BASIC EDUCATION CURRICULUM (BEC)

 


 

25th May, 2023

 

PRESS RELEASE

MURIC SUPPORTS MINISTER ADAMU ON REMOVAL OF SEX EDUCATION FROM BASIC EDUCATION CURRICULUM (BEC)

 

The Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) has joined other well-meaning Nigerians in support of the Federal Government of Nigeria for removal of Sex Education from the Basic Education Curriculum (BEC).

 

This was contained in a statement signed and released on Thursday, 25th May, 2023, by the Chairman, Kano State chapter of the Muslim Rights advocacy group, Malam Hassan Sani Indabawa.

 

Mr Indabawa said:

 

"We observe with dismay the orchestrated attack and media campaign against the Honourable Minister of Education, Malam Adamu Adamu, on the directive he issued to the Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Educational Research and Development Council (NERDC) to review and expunge all materials related to Sex Education from the nation's Basic Education Curriculum (BEC).

 

"Although the pronouncement was made since November, 2022, yet the proponents of Comprehensive Sexuality Education (CES) are yet to down their tools of deliberate misinformation and smear campaign against the Minister.

 

"It is very sad to observe that some Civil Society Organizations (CSOs), Non-governmental Organizations (NGOs), individuals and other professionals are being used to pressurize Malam Adamu to rescind the directive he had earlier issued concerning the review and removal of all lewd and pernicious sexual contents from teaching materials of the country's basic education curriculum. 

 

"Most surprising is that even some critics of the Minister's position recognized the fact that the contents of sex education curriculum are perverse, such that observing them may cause greater danger and risks to pupils by exposing them to immorality at tender age.

 

"We, therefore, recall with pleasure, how the Minister, in his keynote address at the 66th National Council on Education (NCE) meeting held in Abuja, on Thursday, November 3rd, 2022, directed the Nigerian Educational Research and Development Council (NERDC) to "quickly" review the curriculum and expunge any sexual education content from the curriculum being used in schools in Nigeria.

 

"However, in a swift reaction, some CSOs criticized the move by the Minister, rejecting and expressing disappointment over the directives by Malam Adamu, to the Nigerian Educational Research and Development Council (NERDC). 

 

"We, on our part, have similarly make it bold and clear that Nigerians of all faiths and cultures reject the teaching of Comprehensive Sexuality Education (CSE), developed by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and partners for worldwide use to promote promiscuity, fornication and homosexuality. All these contradict our faith, culture and values.

 

"Our children don’t need sex education, what they need is chastity education. They need to learn how to say no and why saying no is in their best interest – physically, emotionally and spiritually. 

 

"What the proponents of CSE are pushing undermines the religious faith of many students. Muslims and Christian students, who have been taught by their parents that premarital sex, birth control, abortion and homosexuality are wrong, are instead taught strange knowledge that contradicts their beliefs.

 

"We, therefore, salute the courage of the Honorable Minister and charge the Executive Secretary of the NERDC to expedite action by swiftly removing the entire sex education from the nation's education system.

 

"We also recognize the support and solidarity of some organizations for identifying with the position of the Federal Government of Nigeria on the removal of sex education from the basic education curriculum. Some organizations like Association of Christian Schools in Nigeria, (ACSN), Concerned Mothers Association (CMA), Pen Publishers and Muslim Students Society of Nigeria (MSSN) "B" Zone, all deserve special mention for their consistent opposition to CSE in our education system. 

 

"Lastly, we call on all other well-meaning Nigerians to support and encourage the Federal Ministry of Education on this and to ensure that NERDC does the needful by promptly removing the entire sex education curriculum as directed by the Minister from the country's education system. 

 

"We believe that the global advocacy for sexual and reproductive health education is nothing but a grand design to destroy every fabric of our family value system, decency and modesty that is natural and appropriate in human beings."

 

 

Malam Hassan Sani Indabawa,

Chairman, 

Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC)

Kano State Chapter