Nobel laureate, Wole Soyinka, has called for the sack of the Imam National mosque, Professor Ibrahim Maqari, over his comment on the murder of Deborah Yakubu, a 200 level student of Shehu Shagari College of Education who was lynched for allegedly blaspheming Prophet Muhammad.
Soyinka accused the Islamic cleric of directing his followers to take the law into their own hands in the name of religion with his statement.
He spoke in Abuja during one-year remembrance of the late former Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Ibrahim Attahiru and the launch of Attahiru’s biography written by ace author, Niran Adedokun.
The Nobel laureate lamented the lynching of people all in the name of religion, calling for the end of such act in the country.
He said, “In the name of all while I’ve given that all for all, I demand that Professor Ibrahim Maqari shall be removed from office. It is no longer sufficient for all to declaim that Islam is this and that assure the Sharia is Dawson does
“The Prophet Muhammad said this or that good example, admit this or that humanistic pronouncement? We’ve gone beyond theocratic rhetoric that merely pays lip service to civilize conduct that all artistic denunciations be backed by affirmative action. We have already, continue to pay too high price for the culture of appeasement and impunity.
” Let it end now in the name of all those who have served this nation and given their lives for this nation. But the new generation should also be programmed to aspire to brutish existence below the lowest common denominator of what constitutes human. Surely, that is where any self respecting nation to draw is defining unbridgeable line.
“Professor Maqari however, insists, with a handful of others including vocal serving policemen quite recently, there is no remorse involved in the torture and lynching of a young student on this earth, which we all share to anyone who cares to listen.
“Maqari has implicitly directed his followers to take the law into their own hands in the name of religion, and innovation, besides beset on all sides by wars, of ultra nationalism, or religious fanaticism. That is the message of a supposedly holy man to youth, to us His message to a nation embroiled in his madness of multiple incidences.
”We have already continued to pay too high price for the culture of appeasement and impunity. Let it end now in the name of all those who have served this nation and given their lives for this nation.
”But the new generation should also be programmed to aspire to brutish existence below the lowest common denominator of what constitutes human. Surely, that is where any self-respecting nation to draw is defining unbridgeable line”,
The wife of Kaduna State governor, Aisha El-Rufai said condemned the killings in the name Islam, adding that killers of Deborah did so against the teachings of Prophet Mohammed.
She said, ”Permit me to say that these people are people we should talk about just like another person who robs and kills the other person, just like a pervert Muslim who rapes a three-month-old baby just like a crazy christian who rapes a six years old girl.
”These people are not doing this with the backing of any religion. Whatever reason they might give their choice is to use religion, they are not for Prophet Mohammed.
”Islam does not preach what they do and the prophet if alive would not have allowed such a madness done to anyone. I feel it is necessary to defend him and the religion which this crazy people smear with their crazy actions.”