Tinubu, Sultan, Yilwatda Seek End To Religious, Ethnic Division

President Bola Tinubu has reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to strengthening security in Nigeria and promoting sustainable peace, as political and religious leaders called for an end to religious intolerance, hate speech and the manipulation of ethnic and religious identities.

The call was made at an international conference on national security for sustainable socioeconomic development in Abuja, attended by senior government officials, political leaders, religious scholars, traditional rulers, academics and other stakeholders.

The deputy Senate president, Senator Barau Jibrin, who represented President Tinubu at the conference, said the conference was holding at a critical time when countries across the world were confronted with multifaceted security challenges.

He said Tinubu was pleased that Nigeria was hosting the gathering and assured the organisers of the federal government’s commitment to sustainable security in the country and the promotion of global peace.

Also, the national chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Prof. Nentawe Yilwatda, urged Nigerians to reject religious intolerance, hate speech and the manipulation of ethnic and religious identities for political advantage.

Yilwatda said Nigeria’s diversity should be regarded as a source of strength rather than division, stressing that citizens of different faiths were bound by a shared history and common destiny together, “and ultimately we can rise and fall together,” he said.

The Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar, called on Nigerians to stop insulting one another on religious grounds and rebuild trust, peaceful coexistence and national unity.

The Sultan said Nigeria did not lack ideas or solutions to its challenges but had struggled with implementing agreements and recommendations reached at conferences and meetings.

“We don’t lack solutions or problems. What we lack is implementation,” he said.

He urged participants to ensure that the outcome of the conference translated into practical measures capable of improving security and national cohesion.

The Sultan commended the Muslim World League and JIBWIS for organising the conference, saying platforms that bring Nigerians together to discuss their problems and solutions were necessary.

He urged religious leaders to engage one another honestly and identify common ground rather than attack governments or engage in excessive praise of political leaders.

The Sultan specifically called on Christians to stop insulting Muslims and Muslims to stop insulting Christians, saying mutual respect was essential to peaceful coexistence.

“We must be honest with ourselves that Christians should stop insulting Muslims, Muslims should stop insulting Christians, and that’s how we live in peace,” he said.

He recalled that Nigerians in previous generations lived together without regarding one religious group as superior to another.

According to him, piety, good character and the way people treat their neighbours should matter more than religious differences.

The Sultan also condemned the abuse of public figures on social media, warning Nigerians against spreading false information and malicious statements about political and religious leaders.

The Executive Secretary of the Nigeria Inter-Religious Council (NIREC), Prof. Cornelius Afebu Omonokhua, also warned against the weaponisation of religion, ethnicity and poverty to create division and conflict.

Omonokhua said humanity remained the fundamental bond among Nigerians, noting that people were first created as human beings before identifying with particular religions.

“No one is created a Christian, and no one is created a Muslim. We are created as human beings. Hence, what binds us together is humanity,” he said.

He noted that Nigeria’s major religious traditions included African traditional religion, Christianity and Islam, while highlighting the country’s unique interfaith structure.

According to him, the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA) and the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) provided platforms through which Muslims and Christians could engage one another.

He said the two bodies came together in 1999 to establish NIREC as a platform for sustained interfaith dialogue.

Omonokhua said NIREC, co-chaired by the leaders of the NSCIA and CAN, had demonstrated that Christians and Muslims could work together peacefully.

He said the essence of religion should be mercy, compassion and love rather than hostility or mere tolerance of people of other faiths.

Citing teachings from both Christianity and Islam on the sanctity of human life, he said religious belief should strengthen respect for human dignity and the common good.

He said NIREC remained non-partisan and focused on promoting human dignity, common welfare and peaceful relations among Nigerians.

Omonokhua appealed to citizens and leaders to reject attempts to manipulate religious, ethnic and economic grievances.

“I would like to appeal very passionately that we should never, never, never allow anybody to weaponize religion or ethnicity or poverty to turn us against each other,” he said.