Group Hails Sultan’s Stand On Religious Council

The Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) has commended the Sultan of Sokoto Muhammadu Sa’ad Abubakar III for his frank, truthful and bold declaration at the second tri-annual meeting of the Nigeria Inter-Religious Council (NIREC), held in Abuja on Wednesday.

Reacting to Sultan’s statement at the meeting, MURIC’s executive director, Professor Ishaq Akintola, said that NIREC had become a mere talk shop, an elephant in the room, and a gangrene polluting the nation’s religious anatomy.

At the meeting, the Sultan of Sokoto and co-chair of the council had warned that NIREC risks losing its relevance unless faith leaders embrace sincerity, accountability, and genuine dialogue.

The group said the president- general of the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs NSCIA) warned that NIREC risks losing its relevance unless faith leaders embrace sincerity, accountability and genuine dialogue.

Akintola said, ”MURIC commends the Sultan for this frank, truthful and bold declaration.

In our humble opinion, NIREC has become a mere talk shop, an elephant in the room and a gangrene polluting the religious anatomy of the nation.

‎”Coming from a leader who has always restrained his Muslim followers from reacting spontaneously to provocative utterances and actions from Christian leaders, a leader who has always counseled Muslims on the need for patience, tolerance and peaceful coexistence, there is no scintilla of ambiguity that the Christian membership of the Council has pushed the Sultan to the wall with their insatiable desire for domination in all matters.

‎”We are also sure that the last nail in the coffin of cordiality among members of NIREC was driven in by ongoing maliciously fabricated allegation of Christian genocide, which is an indubitable evidence of long-standing malice being nursed by Christians within the Council.

‎”If the Christian members in the Council possess goodwill and genuinely manifest the same towards their Muslim members, the reports on the fictitious genocide sent by Nigerian Christians to America could have been tabled first at a NIREC meeting.”