A university lecturer, Ahmad Bello Dogarawa, has called on the political parties and their leaders to take next year’s elections seriously and avoid making statements that are capable of inflaming passions and heating up the polity.
Dogarawa, a professor of Accounting at the Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, made the call recently at an event organised to commemorate the 62nd independence anniversary of the country, which was held at the National Mosque Conference Centre, Abuja.
The don advised current leaders and those aspiring to leadership positions in the upcoming elections to make the people the centre of their objective, warning that Allah would call them to account on the Day of Reckoning.
He said: “As the 2023 general election approaches, we must ensure a free, fair and transparent process. There should be no room for indecorous and inciting statements, hate speeches and abusive languages.
“I want to urge the present or outgoing leaders and the incoming ones to be alive to their responsibilities because whatever they do here, they shall be held accountable on the Day of Judgment.
“We should heed to the advice of Prophet Muhammad that leadership is a trust and on the Day of Judgment, it is going to be humiliation except for those who lived up to their responsibilities.”
Speaking on the relationship between shura (Consultation) and democracy, Dogarawa said the two are people-oriented as they allow the people to have a voice on who should govern them and hold the leaders accountable.
He however said that while shura legislation is based on the teachings of the Qur’an and the tradition of Prophet Muhammad, democracy is woven around the people who elect their representatives who in turn make laws for the country, not minding if it is in tune with what Allah wants.
The scholar admonished Nigerians to love their country as a demonstration of their patriotism.
The chairman on the occasion, the Sultan of Sokoto and President General of the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA), Alhaji Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar, called on the government to guarantee Muslim schoolgirls across the country their right to use hijab (head cover).
Top government functionaries who graced the event included the Senate President, Ahmed Lawan who represented President Muhammadu Buhari; the wife of the president, Aisha Buhari; the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha; and the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Musa Muhammad Bello.
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