Religious extremism has been identified as one recurring decimal capable of ripping apart the weak nexus holding Nigeria together. Many innocent Nigerians had met their untimely deaths owing to this viciousness. The recent stoning to death of Mrs. Bridget Agbahime on an allegation of blaspheming Prophet Mohammed (SWT) by some angry Muslim youths in Kano State and the killing of Eunice Elisha who was on her routine early “morning cry” in Kubwa, Abuja has once again exposed the danger posed by this religious vice. It was confirmed that the victim of Kano was murdered for challenging Dauda Ahmad and others who habitually perform ablution in front of her shop at Kofar Wambai market in Kano metropolis. How her insistence that a religious exercise commonly practiced by people of other faith should not take place in her business space turns out a blasphemy was disturbing. It could be adduced that a disenchanted group of rabble rousers envious of someone could come up with an allegation of blasphemy to punish, eliminate or teach their enemy an unforgettable lesson of life. The latter was the situation surrounding the murder of the Seventy Four years old Bridget in the presence of her aged husband. Nigerians are passionate people, passionate about their cultural values and religious beliefs. Both have shaped the life and times of all the ethnic nationalities since independence. Thus the frenzied passion to defend ones religious beliefs cannot be underestimated. Our nation has passed through numerous harrowing experiences, of crisis situations and skirmishes with dangerous religious undertones.
“Religious extremism is not respecting the fundamental human right of other people to hold religious beliefs that are different from your own.”It has been condoned and treated with kid’s glove by religious leaders and the law alike. The authorities concerned succumb to the overwhelming powers and influence of our peculiar cultural and religious environments whenever it happens to the jeopardy of the society. Nigeria has become one hot spot known for religious extremism and intolerance. It has drawn a huge gulf of understanding, relationships and increased suspicion amongst all ethnic nationalities. In 1995, one Gideon Akaluka was murdered in Kano by some angry Muslims because according to them his wife allegedly used a portion of the Qur’an to clean up her baby after defecation. The mob over-powered the police station where he was kept in protective custody and forcefully took the man away, brutally murdered him and had his head hoisted like a flag and paraded like a trophy along the streets of the ancient city of Kano.
Numerous other cases of religious lynching carried out in recent times have succeeded in rendering our extant laws ineffective and forced same to cow-tow to societal and environmental factors. Grace Ushang a Corps member who served in Maiduguri in 2009 was murdered for wearing trouser. Christiana Oluwasesin was also lynched by High School students in Gombe State in 2007on an allegation that she desecrated the Qur’an as she was invigilating exam. Later on it was realised that she seized some pages of the Qur’an used by the students as an instrument for their nefarious acts. As at today the security agencies were unable to ascertain the truth behind the brutal killing of human beings on account of unsubstantiated allegation of blasphemy. We went our normal businesses as if nothing happened. Those whose filthy hands were soaked deeply in the blood of fallen compatriots must be made to face the full weight of the law and never allowed to move around unmolested as if some persons are sacred cows.
The incidents above bear the same mark and semblance of religious enviousness, ignorance, conspiracy or outright folly. Since the incident of Akaluka and other related ones, preceding governments have only sent out condolence messages and issued statements in condemnation of the dastardly act of religious jungle justice but failed to inspire the law to take its full course. However, delivering his last Salah message to the good people of Kano state, Governor Abdullahi Ganduje came down heavily on the perpetrators of evils in the name of advocating for religion and of fighting for God who himself is the omnipotent. He warned that his government will no longer tolerate or condone actions of anyone hiding under the guise of religion to foment trouble. He extolled the life of patience and maturity of Christians for towing the line of peace despite series of provocations. The Governor drew an analogy of a crucified rat on a cross bearing an inscription of Jesus paraded round the city of Kano without any Christian raising a whimper. The Governor in that message challenged any Muslim to show him the portion of the Qur’an where the injunction to fight for Allah was firmly established.
It would be recalled that after a meeting with the Christian Association of Nigeria on the case of Mrs. Bridget Agbahime, the governor asserted that, “justice must be done in the matter, in accordance with the law.” Those involved in the killing currently have their dates with the court of law. The Salah message of Ganduje has opened a new vista of hope and opportunities to ensure tolerance and peaceful coexistence. It was timely owing to the high level of notoriety this evil has taken. The message has restored the hope and confidence of non-Muslims often molested or killed at will in Kano and other parts of the north by these trouble makers. It is an evidence of government’s resolve to secure the lives and properties of all and sundry and a determination to deal with this bane squarely. Leadership at every levels of government should deal decisively with those fanning the embers of religious discord in our society and ensure that it is no longer tolerated in Nigeria for the desired peace to rein. Kano should not lose its spot as an embodiment of commerce in northern Nigeria by allowing religious zealots to destroy what it is known for over the years. Same goes to every state in Nigeria.
How does the nation overcome this religious question? There should be an enhanced spiritual re-engineering and understanding of the tenets of every religion in Nigeria. It was noted that some unscrupulous religious leaders have succeeded in indoctrinating and feeding individuals with distorted religious messages leading to the problem at hand. We need to independently study our various Holy Books without relying principally on what religious leaders merely teach us. “Study to show yourself approved unto God, a workman that need not be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth,” – II Tim 2: 15. Government at all levels in conjunction with religious bodies should put together sincere and transparent regulations of religious practices in place and set a monitoring and evaluation mechanism aimed at sieving the chaff from the wheat.
Written by Sunday Onyemaechi Eze, a Media and Communications Specialist.
sunnyeze02@yahoo.com
08060901201
