*Kunle Sanni, Kamal Akintunde say all Yoruba Muslims show more confidence, trust in Sultan leadership
*They should continue because Yoruba Muslims cannot be separated from brothers in Northern Nigeria – Ogun State Muslim Council’s Chief Scribe
*We will physically thank the League of Imams and Alfas for this achievement – Oyo State Muslim Council Leader
*This Sultan is a special creature of Allah – League of Imams and Alfas Leader, Kewulere
*Says Muslims need to stay together for Islam to progress in Nigeria
*Only Sultan of Sokoto can announce commencement, ending of Ramadan fasting in Nigeria – Conference of Islamic Organisations (CIO)
By BASHIR ADEFAKA
The hitches in unity, which the Muslim Ummah of Nigeria has always had until recent years with the advent of Sultanate and Amirship of His Eminence Alhaji Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar, have finally ended as Muslims of Yoruba Land, under the aegis of the League of Imams and Alfas South West and Edo/Delta, declared vote of confidence in the leadership of the Ummah by Sultan of Sokoto and resolved to henceforth follow his directives on commencement and termination of Ramadan fast.
Long before the coming of the sitting Sultan, the League of Imams and Alfas who have the listening ears of the clerics of Yoruba speaking South West and Edo and Delta states had a practice of sitting down weeks before the month of Ramadan and picking a dates that suit their own calendar reading and announcing same to the government and Muslim elites in the region, a development that had always brought about the erroneous thought of “fasting of Muslim North different from fasting of Muslim South”.
To many with comprehensive understanding of Islam among Muslims of South West, that was a long period of fitnah that is filled with moral and spiritual tribulations because disunity among Muslims anywhere all over the world is bad omen as they were created and scripturally binded together in a united brotherhood.
Division or separation of Muslim North from Muslim South, which usually unveiled during the commencement and termination of Ramadan fasting in Nigeria, was considered as capable of subjecting adherents of the Islamic faith, especially in Yoruba Land, to risks of losing Allah’s mercy, being an easy prey and objects of ridicule in the hands of enemies of Islam and drawing back the entire country in terms of political and economic growth and development.
READ ALSO BREAKING: Ramadan fasting for 1445AH begins Monday 11th March, Sultan of Sokoto declares
The DEFENDER’s investigations revealed that the League of Imams and Alfas of South West and Edo/Delta being averse to the leadership of the Ummah by not recognising directives of Sultan to start and end Ramadan fasting was mainly responsible for the division in the Muslim Ummah. Late Sheikh Qasim Yayi Akorede, when asked as President-General why Imams and Alfas of Yoruba Land were not following Islamic leadership of Sultan then Alhaji Muhammadu Maccido) and he said it was because “an Oba cannot lead religion of Allah.
But when told that “Oba” in the not is not based on idolatry and occultism like in Yoruba Land, he vowed to thenceforth follow announcement to start and end Ramadan fasting by Sultan of Sokoto. According to the investigation, the problem returned to the afterthought demise of Sheikh Yayi Akorede, whose son, Sheikh AbdulHakeem Yayi Akorede, who has continued to follow legacy of supporting unity of the Ummah left behind by his father, succeeded.
Mainly, those who brought back the divisive behaviour into the League of Imams and Alfas were copied and followed with efforts of some tribalised non-Muslim agents of discordance hiding behind the attitude of their League to plant hate and seeds of discord in the hearts fellow Yoruba tribesmen using commonly said divisive statements.
They used the statements of discord to achieve a breakup between the established Muslim Ummah of Nigeria such as saying: “Muslim North hate Muslim South, reason Hausa-Fulani Muslim cannot pray behind Yoruba Muslim”; “Muslim North see Islam in the South as idol and so Yoruba Muslims should return to Isese and stop practicing Islam because it is Hausa-Fulani’s religion.”
To a further extent, a particular former chief scribe of League of Imams and Alfas, to whom Lagos State successive governments listened, was once blamed for the problem of hijab that Muslim female faced in schools and public offices, because he told them that hijab has no basis in Islam, which explains why the anti-hijab offensives by especially Christian controllers of institution were so strong for a long time in Yoruba Land to the extent that even with Supreme Court judgment that is peak and final of all judgments, Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu still dragged his feet on the ground to allow hijab in Lagos schools. All happened because of the opening the anti-Islam agents noticed among Yoruba Muslims of then.
The resolve of the League of Imams and Alfas of South West and Edo/Delta under the leadership of its current President-General, Sheikh Muhammad Jamiu Bello Kewulere – to leave the divisive attitude of the past for a more united present and better future of the Muslim Ummah of Nigeria by now unanimously following the directives of the Sultan of Sokoto as Leader of the country’s Islamic community – underscores the importance of unity of the Ummah and serves as an indication of a paradigm shift that has occurred with assurance that the long desired united, indissoluble and indivisible Muslim Ummah is now here.
Kunle Sanni (Oyo State)
Former President of National Council of Muslim Youth of Nigeria (NACOMYO) and current Chairman, Oyo State State Muslim Community (OMCO), Alhaji Ishaq Kunle Sanni and Secretary General of the Ogun State Muslim Council, Alhaji Kamal Akintunde, disclosed to The DEFENDER in separate telephone media interviews, on Monday, disclosed the new resolution of the League of Imams and Alfas of South West and Edo/Delta by which they upheld the leadership of Sultan as the leader, whose directives they will abide with and follow in matter of commencement and termination of Ramadan fasting.
All their claims have been confirmed by President-General of the League of Imams and Alfas, Sheikh Bello Kewulere, who also spoke with The DEFENDER on Tuesday, just as National President of the Federation of Muslim Women Association of Nigeria (FOMWAN), Alhaja Rofiat Kunle Sanni, also reacted to the cheerful and gratifying development.
In his submission, Alhaji Ishaq Kunle Sanni said, “We have every cause to thank the Almighty Allah for the unity tgat we achieve this in commencing the Ramadan fasting this year. It was a struggle and alhamdulillahi we have won as a united Ummah. The League of Imams and Alfas would, before now, would sit down two weeks before Ramadan to decide when to start and when to end Ramadan fasting.
“Last year was bad because, it was the Chief Imam of Ibadan, Alhaji…., that sat down in the comfort if his room where he picked and announced a date for Ramadan fast commencement. But we stood our ground and told him it was not Islamic to do so as it was against the dictate of the Holy Qur’an and practice as well as tradition of Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him).
“But this year, the usual thing we used to see the League of Imams and Alfas did, did not not happen. They, in fact, held their meeting normally but announced to themselves at tge meeting it was the announcement of Sultan of Sokoto as Leader of the Nigerian Muslim Ummah they would wait for and follow in commencing and terminating Ramadan fast this year.
“They said that they would wait for tge decision of tge National Moon Sighting Committee under the leadership established by the Suktan and that was what they did. We are happy about that and we will physically get back to them to appreciate the League of Imams and Alfas of South West and Edo/Delta for this giant stride they have made in ensuring a sustainable peace and unity of the Nigerian Muslims and we pray for them that Allah will continue to strengthen them in the good deeds,” Alhaji Kunle Sanni told The DEFENDER in a 1st day of Ramadan interview on Tuesday.
Kamal Akintunde (Ogun State)
In his own statement, Alhaji Kamal Akintunde said commencement of 1445AH Ramadan fasting in Ogun State was seamless with desired uniformity and expressed the expectation that it will continue that way especially by the League of Imams and Alfas of South West Nigeria.
According to Akintunde, who is the Chief scribe of Ogun State Muslim Council in a region that agents of ethnic discrimination and religious hate had used as as battle ground against the United Muslim Ummah of Nigeria for many years, “We are experiencing a paradigm shift now in the South West and among the Muslim Ummah of the region.”
Kamal Akintunde, a lawyer, said, “Everybody was waiting for the announcement of the Sultan for the commencement of Ramadan fastbthis year ab it was unprecedentedly and remarkably commendable as well as highly hratifying.
“League of Imams and Alfas, which used to sit down an pick its own date for the commencement and ending of Ramadan fast on their own without a recourse to the position of Allah’s Qur’an and Sunnah of his Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), decided this year that they would henceforth follow the directives as announced by the Leader of the Ummah, the Sultan of Sokoto.
“It shows the confidence the Muslims of Yoruba Land have in the leadership provided by the Sultan because from their social media platforms to their individual discussions, Muslims especially members of the League of Imams and Alfas this year resolved and said to themselves that even if they heard that moon had been sighted, they must wait for the announcement of the Sultan of Sokoto because, according to them, he is the Leader of the Ummah who they trust and him they would follow.”
Akintunde cited a pre-Ramadan programme held in Abeokuta, well attended by himself, JAMB Registrar, Prof. Is-haq Oloyede, former Nigerian High Cmmissioner to the United Kingdom and Baba Adinni of Yoruba Land, His Excellency Chief Sarafa Isola, during which he said all the Yoruba Muslim leaders present spoke well favouring to once and for all do things properly by looking after directives by Sultan of Sokoto in matter of the Islamic religion especially as concerns one of most vital worship as fasting in the month of Ramadan.
FOMWAN Amira
In her reaction, FOMWAN Amira, Alhaja Rofiat Kunle Sanni acknowledged that tge Imams and Alfas of Yoryba Land did well for deciding at this time to finally allow Allah and his Propget peace be upon him to be the guiding principle of what they do of Islamic worship.
“Whatever the people do, the promise of Allah will always come through. A Muslim does not do things by his own volition except as dictated by Allah and his Prophet peace be upon him.
“The Prophet said something that when a Muslim wants to do something especiallyin matter of worship in Islam, he should ask himself two questions: One, is it in agreement with with the permissible of Allah? Two, is it being impmemented as done and taught by the Prophet? Then he should find out what Allah and his Messenger said about when to start and to to stop.
“That is what is expected of a Muslim. If Allah and his Messenger have said this is the time to start and end Ramadan fasting, who are we ordinary persons to we have our own say?
“I spoke to a brother in China yesterday who said they were waiting for their Imam to announce and sighting of the new moon of Ramadan and tgat if they heard from other countries they would not start. But by evening time, they said the new moon had been sighted there in China,” she said.
Sultan Sa’ad Abubakar special creature of Allah – League of Imams Leader, Kewulere
Confirming the developmesaid, PresidentGender of the League of ImamsandAlfas, South Westand Edo/Delta, sheikh Bello Kewulere, “All activities commencing Ramadan fasting this year 1445AH equivalent to 2024 went well without hitches as Muslims (of Yoruba Land) started at once this year as directed in the announcement of the Leader and Sultan of Sokoto, His Eminence Alhaji Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar. What is best is for us to stay together for Islam to progress in Nigeria.
“We have cordial relationship with Sultan leadership. Allah created the Sultan as a special being. Since he came on the throne, he has been holding meetings with us, he has been talking to us and we believe in his leadership and we thank amalgamated for him.
“With him and the Nigerian Muslim Ummah he leads, we are united under the guidance of Allah abd leadership that he has been blessed to provide abd we pray that Allah continues to strengthen the Sultan for all of us as an Ummah,” he said.
Corroborating the Sultan, Sheikh Kewulere called on well-to-do Muslims to assist the less privileged, adding that it had become compulsory in the current reality of economic challenges and hardship that people have been subjected in the country.
Conference of Islamic Organisations (CIO)
It will be recalled that on Tuesday 27th February 2024, leadership of Conference of Islamic Organisations (CIO) including its Secretary General, Engr. Luqman Balogun; Mufti, Sheikh Zikrullahi Shafii; and Member, Amir Qamardeen Ajala, at a pre-Ramadan programme organised to sensitise Nigerian Muslims in preparation for the year’s Ramadan fasting, had declared that “Only Sultan of Sokoto can announce commencement and termination of Ramadan fasting in Nigeria”.
