By OUR CORRESPONDENT
The Coalition of Northern Groups (CNG) has expressed concern over what it claims is an attempt to destroy the quest for national integration by Reverend Father Mathew Hassan Kukah of the Sokoto Diocese.
It spoke even as another unnamed source has wowed how untouchable Kukah and other Christian leaders whose criticisms of President Buhari have been worse but left free while Islamic cleric not as worse in criticism of the President had once been arrested.
CNG alleges that Father Kukah was exploiting the cleavages of religion to cause disharmony and facilitate the further emasculation of northern Nigerian Muslims.
The CNG in a statement through its spokesman, Abdul-Azeez Suleiman, said they find it ironic that a Reverend would choose the revered occasion of the celebration of the birth of Christ to needlessly incite hatred against a section of the country.
The group alleged that Kukah’s statement testifies to the growing trend of selectively amplifying the perceived crimes of the Hausa/Fulani Muslims and downplaying those committed against them.
The CNG explained, “It testifies to how religious bodies and leaders such as Kukah in more ways than one, attempt to aid the deterioration of the situation in the country by stimulating a form of Islamophobia on the back of the most gratuitous false story of an Islamisation agenda.
“It also furthers the irresponsible and unacceptable practice of preachers using the pulpit to promote falsehood and incite their followers against certain sections of the society by labelling and earmarking them to be targeted irrespective of whether they are part of a crime committed or not.
“History is being shamefully and blatantly reviewed, rewritten and falsified In the process, history is being shamefully and blatantly reviewed, rewritten and falsified. In the process, the consciousness eroded Kukah that the four most violent military insurrections in Nigeria’s history were schemed, spearheaded and executed by non-Muslims, and in most cases, non-Northerners.
”It is important, therefore, to place on record, that the very first and most bloody January 1966 coup was carried out by mostly non-Muslim Igbo army officers including Major Kaduna Nzeogwu, and Major Emmanuel Ifeajuna.”
The statement said that the casualties of the coup were mostly northern Muslims including the Prime Minister Alhaji Abubakar Tafawa Balewa, the Sardauna of Sokoto Sir Ahmadu Bello, Brigadier Abubakar Maimalari and others.
”A palace coup was led by Major General Ibrahim Babangida, a northern Muslim who peacefully overthrew the administration of Buhari. In 1990, Major Gideon Orkar, a northern Christian, staged a violent attempt to overthrow the government of General Ibrahim Babangida.
The CNG insists it is worried at the alleged attempt to single out a certain religion and target its adherents for stereotyping.
“We do not contend their claims of the current administrative lapses, nor do we intend to fault the right of people to criticise government’s inadequate, ineffective, exclusive and unfocused policies.
”The northern Muslims, contrary to the deliberate distortions by the Kukahs, happen to be the major casualty of this administration’s serial misgovernance in terms of security, economy, distribution of key federal appointments and essential goods and services, making it unacceptably irresponsible for Kukah and his ilk to hide behind the guise of criticism of the government to attack a whole ethnic or religious group,” the statement explained.
In a submission by an unnamed source titled, “BISHOP KUKAH: THE UNTOUCHABLE SPECIAL BREED”, said:
“In May 2019, an islamic cleric, Malam Idris Abdulaziz was arrested by the DSS and detained for criticising President Muhammadu Buhari. He told a newspsper: “I was categorically told that I have been criticising the President in my sermons.”
“Even criticising a Governor, had recently earned a Sokoto based islamic preacher, Mal. Bello Yabo an arrest and transported all the way to Kaduna to answer queries.
“However, I cannot count the number of Christian clerics that have on regular basis, been criticising Predident Muhammadu Buhari, the Islamic faith and the Hausa/Fulani and none is arrested.
“Kukah picked to be posted to Sokoto as Bishop for the purpose of showing the world that the headquarters of islam in West Africa in the 18th century, the Sokoto caliphate, has fallen in to the kitty of christendom.
“Shehu Usman bin Fodio must be turning in his grave that the Madinah (Sokoto city) and indeed, the entire state that is 100 percent Muslim except for aliens, now hosted a christian diocese whose evangelists roam the villages with Naira mints to entice the people to convert.
“While he was welcomed in to the city with open arms and even given a traditional title by the Sultan, he shamelessly insults the people, the institution and islam at any given opportunity.
“No doubt that in a democratic setting, any public official, including President Muhammadu Buhari is fair game and open to criticism by citizens, but attacking his faith and his tribe is an attack on all. It should not be condoned.
“While islamic clerics get arrested and are constantly intimidated by authorities for flimsy excuses, the likes of Bishop Kukah walk free, even when he calls for military coup against a democratically elected government and worst, war.
“If Kukah cannot be touched because he is a special breed Christian and a Bishop, and the federal government is afraid of reaction from the Vatican, US, EU and CNN, Muslims should rise up and speak out against such discrimination. Kukah must be arrested and prosecuted for treason, or no Islamic cleric should ever be arrested again for criticising the government or its leadership.”
