—We have done a lot — Sultan
By Abdullahi M. Gulloma
Abuja
President of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor, yesterday called on the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar III, to write a letter to the Boko Haram insurgents requesting for a halt in the mass killings of citizens by the sect.
Speaking at the opening session of a roundtable meeting with Special Advisers on Religious Affairs from the 36 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory at the State House in Abuja, Oritsejafor said there is the need for the Sultan to write to the leadership of Boko Haram the same way he wrote the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) on the need to stop their violent campaign which is bringing the name of Islam to disrepute.
Oritsejafor expressed concern that churches in Mubi, Adamawa state, and other parts of the North-east have been destroyed by Boko Haram, which he said is more dangerous than ISIS.
He said: “His Eminence said he wrote a letter to ISIS, I have to truly congratulate you for that because that was a very good move. I didn’t know about it until today and I am so glad it happened. But I want to appeal that you also write to Boko Haram because Boko Haram is worse than ISIS. They have killed more people than ISIS, they have caused more atrocities than ISIS. They need to be written to as well, it is very important, it will help.
“I have made an appeal several times that there are some of our leaders who must come together — religious, political and traditional. They must come and discuss. I have heard, and I may be wrong, one thing you will learn about me is that I’m usually not politically correct, I tell you as it is. But I have been told that the Boko Haram to a very large extent are very versed in scriptures. What scriptures do they use? There are still religious clerics that they respect.
“If these people are not presenting the right thing and are misrepresenting Islam, which I agree it is so, we agree that we need to reach our brothers so that the real Islam can be presented to them. They won’t listen to me, in fact they will kill me faster than anything else. Oh yes, that is the truth and I am aware of that. In fact, as I speak I know what is going on around me all the time, so I know.
“But that it will be wrong to say they don’t kill Muslims, please don’t misunderstand me, but the reality is that the Muslims they kill, they kill for two reasons. One, they are Muslims who disagree with their ideology, that is a fact and I thank God for that. Two, they are Muslims who refused to work with them or give information about them, so they are not happy with them. It is a fact, so I am not going to deny that.
“But if you go to a city like Mubi, no church is standing as I speak. Every church in that city has been leveled. It is very painful, it is disheartening. Can you imagine a governor saying to somebody ‘I cannot use the money of my state to send people of a certain religion on pilgrimage’? We must change such attitude, we must correct this thing. We cannot do that and have a great nation.
“Let me say that our actions must match our words. It is not enough to say sweet and good and wonderful things. Those wonderful things are good but our practical actions must match everything we are saying. When you meet, meet with the heart that this is our Nigeria, we don’t have another one. And as you meet, because you know you are not crossing to Cameroon, you are not crossing to Chad, you are in Nigeria and you are a Nigerian. Put all the cards on the table. You may annoy each other, you may offend each other but if we genuinely truly believe that we are all Nigerians, then we will find ways to work out those disagreements. But to sweep issues under the carpet will not take us anywhere.”
Earlier, in his remarks, the Sultan said contrary to belief in some quarters, Islamic leaders in the country have done more than enough to preach against the activities of Boko Haram.
He said: “In a situation where Muslim leaders condemn insurgents and they will still be told they have not done enough, that is not fair. We don’t tell ourselves the truth. Followers are not telling the leaders the truth, and the leaders will think they are doing the right things.
“If the governor in Sokoto is told that he should sponsor four people to Christian pilgrimage, so be it. It is government’s fund. If a land is needed in Kano for a church, they should get it after following the due process.
“Muslim leaders have tried so much. I have gone across the globe to say that there is no problem between Islam and Christianity. We wrote to the Pope, the document is titled ‘The Common World’ – published in 2010. He replied us and since that time, we have been having meetings.
“We also wrote to Islamic State (ISIS) to tell them that they should not continue to do what they are doing in the name of Islam. If we read those documents we must trust what we have said. If we don’t trust one another, we cannot move forward. If we say one thing here and go back to our states to do other things, we have wasted our time and resources.”
While urging followers to stop telling their leaders what they want to hear, the Sultan said he and Oritsejafor had written a letter to President Goodluck Jonathan on how to end the scourge about two years ago.
He said he reiterated the need for the president to pay attention to the letter when they were invited to an expanded meeting of the National Security Council, stressing that they have done their best because they can only advise while the power to implement rests with the government.
He said: “Don’t tell the leaders what they want to hear. We wrote a letter to the President on what to do to end the scourge about two years ago. Myself and CAN President, Oritsejafor, wrote him about two years ago.
“When we met again in the villa for Security Council meeting, I reminded him. We told him we have done our best. We can only advise; we do not have constitutional powers to implement.”
