Tasks Security Agents To Fish Out Faceless Advocates Of ‘Holy War’

The Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) has alleged that there is an evil plot to unleash violence on South West Muslims by some faceless groups.

The group has, therefore, asked the Inspector General of Police, Director General of the Department of State Security (DSS) and other security agencies to stop the move and secure the lives of every Muslim resident in the region.

MURIC, in a statement on Friday by its Executive Director, Prof. Ishaq Akintola, disclosed that there had been a plethora of threats in video clips and articles circulated on social media, which were directed at Yoruba Muslims and their leaders over the ongoing Shari’ah controversy.

Alleging that the threats were being issued on a daily basis by different Yoruba groups, MURIC cited the latest statement issued by one Ahmed Saliu Olokoju, who claimed to be the Secretary General of Yoruba Islamic Salvation Front (YOISF).

The statement added: “In an article captioned ‘Shariah in Yorubaland: The Fulani Grand Plot to Destroy Yorubaland,’ Olokoju labelled Yoruba Muslims who are supporting civil Shari’ah in Yorubaland as ‘Fulani agents.’ This is ethnic bigotry and incitement of one ethnic group against another.

“He also engaged in criminal name-dropping by directly mentioning the names of Muslim leaders and that of a prominent Muslim traditional ruler. He wrote, ‘The game changer to destroy Yorubaland is to introduce Sharia. The rogues, criminals supporting them are one Akintola from Ile Ife who lectures at Lagos State University; the Oluwo of Iwo, Mahmud Adesina and a few others whom we understand have been paid some $10m in advance. To them, religion is profit.’

“This was followed by direct threats to wage ‘holy war’ against proponents of Shari’ah, ‘to seek them, their children, their wives and their businesses.’ According to him, ‘…To mobilise and wage holy war against these promoters of Sharia and their agents in Yorubaland, we shall pursue them and seek them, their children, their wives and their businesses wherever they are. Yorubaland must never and can never have Sharia. That is a call for war in families and in communities.’

“Olokoju also mobilised his audience to join his murderous group for training in terrorist acts against Yoruba Muslims. He said, ‘If you are reading this, pass it on, and join YOISF in your locality for the training and preparation for Jihad against Yoruba rogues, criminals and bastards who are bent on using religion to cause civil war in Yorubaland. We shall stop them with their own Sword and Gun.”

MURIC urged the security agencies to see the threats as serious and give them the attention they deserve.

The group noted that all the threats emerging from Yorubaland had emanated from faceless Yoruba groups against Yoruba Muslims and that Yoruba Muslims had remained cool, collected and unperturbed without responding in like manner.

“The Presidency cannot afford to ignore threats of war coming from the president’s own people. This is the time for Aso Rock to pay attention to religious rumblings in the president’s backyard.

“In like manner, we call all religious leaders in the geopolitical zone to take necessary steps towards dousing tension on the Shari’ah imbroglio because any religious war in Yorubaland will spell doom for the whole South West population .

“We have confidence in the professionalism and non-partisanship of the Nigerian security agencies. Those threatening to unleash violence on Muslims must be stopped. The time is now.

“We appeal to all Yoruba Muslims and their brethren in faith all over the country to remain calm and patient. There should be no inflammatory remarks or provocative write-ups,” MURIC said.

It urged the Muslim community in Nigeria to abide by the principle of peaceful coexistence laid down by the leadership of the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA), adding that Muslims are disciplined people and their religion is a religion of peace.