GOVERNOR Rotimi Akeredolu of Ondo State has promised to construct a befitting mosque inside the Government House, Alagbaka, Akure, in no distant time.
The governor, who made the promise during an empowerment programme organised by the Ondo State Muslim Welfare Board, said this would afford Muslims in the Government House to have a befitting place of worship.
He expressed surprise about the absence of a mosque within the compound but said a place of worship would be constructed inside the official residence of the governor, just like a chapel was built within the premises for Christians.
Akeredolu restated his commitment to giving equal treatment to all residents of the state, irrespective of religion, ethnicity or political affiliations and promised to leave no stone unturned in the bid to give all residents a sense of belonging in the scheme of things.
He noted that the people of the South West had been living together peacefully, regardless of the religion or political leaning.
According to him, the South West is a beacon of hope for other parts of the country in terms of inter-religious harmony and called for stronger bonds among the adherents of the different faiths.
He said there was hardly a family where one would not find people of the same lineage living together in peace despite belonging to different religious persuasions.
He commended the state Muslims Welfare Board under the leadership of the Seriki Musulumi of Ondo, Alhaji Khaleel Fawehinmi, for organising the empowerment programme aimed at alleviating the sufferings of underprivileged faithful.
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Speaking on the rationale behind the initiative, Fawehinmi, who described the empowerment as first of its kind in the history of the board, said more beneficiaries would be accommodated in the next phase of the programme.
The guest lecturer, Ustadh Mukhtar Ibrahim, commended the governor for returning the hajj camp, which was earlier converted to an Ebola treatment centre in the wake of the last outbreak of the deadly virus, to the Muslim Ummah even as he appealed to Akeredolu to cap it up by making all necessary facilities available at the camp.
The chairman of the League of Imams and Alfas in the state, who is also the Chief Imam of Owo, Sheikh Ahmad Aladesawe, pleaded with the governor for more life-impacting projects.
He listed some of the basic needs of the common man to include potable water, good roads and stable electricity supply, saying the dearth of all these amenities contributed to the uncontrollable rural-urban migration which, he said, was responsible for a surge in crime in many towns and cities.
Dignitaries at the event urged beneficiaries of the empowerment programme to make judicious use of the items and cash received to improve their living conditions and turn around the fortunes of their families.
Over 270 persons were presented with items ranging from sewing machines, hair dryers to generators as well as grinding machines while widows, orphans and physically challenged individuals smiled home with various cash gifts.
Some of the beneficiaries, including Mrs Adenike Taiwo and Ridwan Omoloja, thanked the board for the empowerment initiative, describing it as a step in the right direction.