The commissioner representing Rivers State on the board of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Engr. Chukwudi Dimkpa, has said he decided to build a mosque for Muslims in the state, in fulfillment of his corporate social responsibility.
He said the decision to build the mosque, located at Isiokpo, headquarters of Ikwerre local government area of the state, was also in keeping with his desire to encourage unity, religious tolerance, freedom of worship and peaceful coexistence amongst people of all faith and beliefs living in the society.
Dimkpa, who spoke yesterday at Isiokpo shortly after inspecting the progress of work at the site. He said: “You don’t have to be a Muslim, neither do you have to belong to any particular religious sect to know that God is God.
“And if we are all one people as we ought to be, then helping our Muslim brothers to get this all-important mosque which they have been praying to have for a long time is a clarion call.
“So, whether you are a Muslim or a Christian or belonged to any other faith, once there is a need in your environment, whether by way of giving back and helping people to worship God in whichever way they choose. It is something we should do to allow everyone the right and freedom to express their own faith and religious belief.”
In his remarks, the Chief Imam of Isiokpo Central Mosque, Alhaji Muhideen Babatunde, expressed gratitude to Dimkpa for the gesture and prayed for God’s blessings and protection upon him.
Babatunde said, “This our oga (Chukwudi Dimkpa) is the one helping us to build this central mosque for us, Muslims here in Isiokpo. We are very happy; we are thankful and we ask Almighty Allah to continue to bless and protect him.”
Also, a Muslim leader in the area, Alhaji Habibu Usman, said Muslims in Isiokpo were extremely happy with this development, especially to see Dimkpa come by himself to inspect progress of work done so far to ensure it is properly executed.
Usman said, “We are very happy for our Oga to come see us and the project. This project is being done by Chukwudi Dimkpa and we are very happy and we pray God to protect him. May God guide him and continue to bless him.
“We are very happy to see him come to see us and to inspect the project. We will continue to pray for him to ensure that the project is completed.”
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