‘Muslims’ unity tool for national progress’

MUSLIMS have been urged to close ranks and forge a common front in an effort to move Nigeria to an enviable height.

The Chief Imam of Ansar-Ud-Deen Society of Nigeria in Oyo State, Dr Bashir Olanrewaju, made the appeal recently at the annual Independence Day lecture of the state chapter of The Muslim Congress (TMC), held at NASFAT Ground, Samonda, Ibadan.

Speaking on the topic, “Repositioning the Ummah: Muslims on Call,” the cleric noted that Muslims had for long been prevented from playing critical roles in matters of societal growth and development owing to lack of unity among them.

He called on the faithful to surmount the challenge of Islamophobia and its attendant consequences if indeed they would live up to the responsibility of providing direction for the human race.

To move the society forward, Muslims, he said, must be at the forefront, a position that could only be reached under a common banner.

He noted that Islam had the effective antidote to all challenges while Muslims have to internalise teachings of the Qur’an and harmonise their efforts on nation building.

On his part, a Lagos-based cleric, Imam Abdul Lateef Sulayman, decried the tag of terrorism attached to Muslims, noting that the enemies of Islam were only maximising loopholes occasioned by fractions within the Muslim community to present a wrong picture of the religion to the people.

While delivering a lecture on “Confronting the Challenge of Identity Theft and Terrorism: Muslims on Call,” Sulayman noted that Islam was being unnecessarily attacked by Western powers who saw the religion as a challenge to the seed of injustice and inequality being sowed across the world.

He, therefore, warned that the situation would persist until Muslims unite to confront it head-on.

The head of the TMC in the state, Mallam Abdul Mumin Busayri, said that the time had come for Muslims to evolve workable strategies in tackling global challenges, especially ones that had direct effect on them.

The Aare Musulumi of Yorubaland, Alhaji Dawud Akinola, harped on fear of Allah and strict adherence to Islamic teachings in achieving societal progress.

The occasion attracted Muslim clerics and personalities across the state.