Focus Your Sermons On Tackling Banditry, Kidnapping – Northern Youths Council Knocks Sheikh Mansur For Saying Non-Muslim Governors Would Threaten Islam

The Northern Youths Council of Nigeria (NYCN) has cautioned a prominent Islamic cleric, Sheikh Mansur Sokoto, urging him to refrain from misrepresenting Islam and interfering in politics.

SaharaReporters had reported that Mansur spoke on the governorship election tribunals sitting in Taraba and Nasarawa states, saying the decision to have non-muslim governors in the two states would threaten Islam.

In a Facebook post titled "Islam and Northern Arewa" in Hausa language, Mansur had shared his reflections, saying, “The ongoing governorship legal disputes in some states are disconcerting. If Taraba and Nasarawa end up with non-Muslim governors, the Islamic religion will be at risk.”

After presenting his perspective, the Islamic cleric posed a question, asking, "What is the solution?"

The Governorship Elections Petition Tribunal, situated in Lafia, had invalidated the victory of Nasarawa State Governor, Abdullahi Sule of the All Progressives Congress (APC), and declared Mr. David Ombugadu of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as the rightful winner of the election.

The tribunal had also affirmed Dr Kefas Agbu as the Taraba State governor.

Meanwhile the NYCN National President, Isa Abubakar at a press conference in Abuja condemned the comments made by the Islamic cleric.

Isa commented, "For those who have been following recent trends on social media, particularly Facebook, you may have encountered a misleading statement by Sheikh Mansur Sokoto, in which he claims that Islam will be endangered if Taraba and Nasarawa states have non-Muslim governors.

"As Muslims and Northerners, we wonder where Sheikh Sokoto derived his teachings, as Islam advocates good governance over faith. To us, his post appears to be mere speculation and a personal opinion. We advise Sheikh Sokoto to instead focus on generating ideas to combat the rising issues of kidnapping, banditry, and cattle rustling, which have become rampant in the Northern states governed by Muslim governors."

NYCN called on Sheikh Sokoto and other clerics to refrain from inflaming the political environment by interfering in political and judicial matters. Such actions may lead to disunity among Nigerians, intimidation, and threats to court rulings, ultimately jeopardizing the country's peace and democracy.

Isa also made it clear that Mr. David Ombugadu, the Governor-elect of Nasarawa State and the reason for Sheikh Sokoto's outburst, served his constituency diligently as a member of the House of Representatives from 2011 to 2019.

"It is on record that he served his constituents without discrimination based on religion, fostering unity among both Christians and Muslims," Isa emphasized.

"Therefore, any attempt to revoke the mandate given to him by the people of Nasarawa State on religious grounds is undemocratic and un-Islamic. Similarly, in Taraba State, where the current Governor was duly elected, attempting to influence the judiciary using religious sentiments is unwarranted."