Th e Juma’at mosque Imams and prominent Islamic scholars across the north last week gave us a glimpse of what Islam is all about; when they unanimously preach peace and advice obviously angered northern youths to resist the temptation of retaliating, or given the Igbo residing in the northern part of the country a dose of their own brother’s medicine. Th e sermon was delivered by virtually all Jumaat mosques Imam in the north.
Embrace peace, eschew your anger, toe the path of peaceful coexistence because Islam forbids us from visiting the sins of madmen on innocent souls. Th e commendable eff orts of Jamaatul Nasril Islam in directing Imams to preach peace prevented what could have been a light on fi re of religious/ethnic war. Th ey have demonstrated to the whole world what Islam enjoined us to do in the face of unwarranted provocations.
Th e Imam and other responsible leaders in the north have enjoined us to toe the line of peace and allow the constituted authority to address the issue. Contrary to Islamaphobia media propagandists, the Muslim dominated North has been known to be accommodating and peaceful since the amalgamation gamble that eventually culminated in 1960 independence. Virtually all the civil unrests that have occurred in the north are either retaliation or a reaction to provocative action against Muslims.
Th e killing of Hausa Fulani Muslims in the eastern part of the country has been recurrence madness. In April 2016, the department of state secuiry services had accused IPOB of Abducting and killing fi ve hausafulani residents in Abia. Th e DSS released in a statement then wher it said it had uncovered mass graves of Hausa-Fulani residents abducted and murdered by suspected members of the Indigenous Peoples of Biafra, IPOB, in Abia State.
“In a statement signed by its spokesperson in April 2016, Tony Opuiyo, the DSS said the killing of the Hausa-Fulani residents has triggered tension among diff erent communities in Abia State. Although Mr. Opuiyo said fi ve men were killed alongside several other unidentifi ed persons, only the names of four individuals were provided. “Th e Service has uncovered the heinous role played by members of the Indigenous Peoples of Biafra (IPOB), in the abduction/ kidnap of fi ve Hausa-Fulani residents, namely Mohammed Gainako, Ibrahim Mohammed, Idris Yakubu and Isa Mohammed Rago at Isuikwuato LGA in Abia State,” Mr. Opuiyo said.
“Th e abducted men were later discovered at the Umuanyi forest, Abia State, where they were suspected to have been killed by their abductors and buried in shallow graves, amidst fi fty (50) other shallow graves of unidentifi ed persons. On September 1st 2015, Kanu IPOB Pro-Biafran Promises To Kill A Hausa on Radio Biafra. On that particular radio programme, a caller-in, Uchechukwu Madueke said that his brother, Micheal who came from India promise to kill Hausa Fulani Muslims in sight. Interestingly, when some Northern Youths called a press conference to give the Igbo residents in the northern an ultimatum, the whole worlds activates the talking drum.
United Nations and disunited bodies, , Governors, Foreign and local media and Human rights groups were all up in arm calling for the head of those boys. Th e attack of Hausa Fulani or any tribes that has semblance of Muslims by derailed IPOB members who are mostly Christians fi t in into a covert war against Muslims. On the surface, it looks like an ethnic persecution spearheaded by equally bigoted nuisance called Kanu. What surprised many of us is that the Igbo leaders and their political offi ce holders actually reads this handwriting in the wall long ago without making any serious attempt to halt the activity of Kanu and his sponsors.
Th e leadership by example as exemplifi ed by Jumaat Mosque Imams has proved that the human law lacks convictions to truly united humans without the divine guidance. Political statements from political offi ce holders couldn’t have doused the rising temper of Northern youth. For example, during the twentieth century a number of international treatises were signed declaring war as illegal in the settlement of disputes like the Covenant of the League of Nations, the General Treaty for the Renunciation of War and the Charter of United Nations. Despite these conventions, there have been wars and we have not seen the peace which was intended and agreed by the nation’s signatory to these conventions.
Th ese conventions failed to achieve the desired goal, because these human laws lack that moral and spiritual force which is essential for achievement of comprehensive peace. Without divine guidance and revealed truth, human laws lack force of conviction. Only divine moral laws can lead to universal peace and mould human conduct for international brotherhood and love. Th ose moral laws can be recognized by human minds only if those minds are untarnished of all pride and prejudice.
Th ere are Islamic principles for unity of mankind and mutual peaceful co-existence of diff erent cultures and faiths. Among them the most important is common origin of mankind according to which all human beings have been “created of a single soul” (Qur’an 4:1), and that all descended from the same parents (Quran 49:13), so there should not be any discrimination based on clan, creed or race. Th e Quran negates distinction on the basis of racial, linguistic and national grounds and it also identifi es diversity as a sign of God and hence to be respected. Diff erent and diverse identities are for recognition. Promoting divisiveness and hatred based on religious and cultural diff erences is absolutely against Islam
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