Sultan, NSCIA Promoting Fulani Agenda, Not Islam

The Sultan of Sokoto, Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar III and the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs, (NSCIA) are promoting the parochial Fulani ethnic agenda hiden under Islam, Pan Yoruba groups said on Thursday.

The groups in a statement condemned the recent statement by the Sultan that Sharia should be introduced in the South West.

The Alliance for Yoruba Democratic Movements, (AYDM) a coalition of 130 groups in the South West said for over 200 years, the Sultan has defended only the interests of his ethnic group and that the NSCIA is a dubious,decoy cover to realise the real agenda of ethnic subjugation in Nigeria.

The coalition in a statement signed by its General Secretary, Popoola Ajayi, Organising Secretary, Chief Kunle Oshodi and the Director of Mobilisation, Olu Sulaiman Sanusi said the Sultanate is not in the best position to determine what is good for the Yoruba people and that he cannot impose his own world view or that of his people on Yoruba people.

AYDM was responding to the recent statement credited to the Sultan justifying the introduction of Sharia in the some Southern States

The AYDM said available data indicate that the divorce rate in Sokoto is the highest after Kano.

It said this has created social strain leading to very large number of abandoned children, orphans and street children in Sokoto.

The group said members of its coalition are Muslims, Christians and Traditional worshipers saying it was time for Muslims in Nigeria to have an organisation that truly represents their interests.

“We are alarmed that the Sultan of Sokoto is promoting the introduction of Sharia in the old Western Region of Lagos, Ogun, Oyo, Osun, Ekiti, Ondo, Edo, Delta plus Kogi and Kwara States. We urge Nigerians to be conscious of what is going on in Sokoto State where armed gangs have taken over many communities promoting violence, killings and extremism” the group said in the statement.

“The Sultan that presides over the dirtiest and poorest state in Nigeria, the most violent and terrorist ridden state cannot teach Yoruba people anything about marriage, community unity and peace building,” the coalition said.

The AYDM said Sokoto State remains the poorest state in Nigeria, with human misery and constant blood letting as its trademark.

AYDM said the 2023 survey conducted by the Sokoto state government estimated that there are over 776,000 out-of-school children across the 23 local governments of the state.

It said, Sokoto, 67.8 percent of children are out of School while extreme poverty of about 80% of the population are in turmoil.

“Sokoto State today is the hope of high rate of crime,violence, violent divorce, and terrorism. We wonder why the Sultan has not resolved disputes in Sokoto using the Sharia.

AYDM said the root cause of the current violence in Sokoto is the brand of faith that the Sultan wants to transfer to Yoruba territories.

The group said the desperation to focus on the old Western Region is political.

AYDM said Islam first came to Yorubaland in 1300s, some 500 years before the Sultanate while Islam came to Hausaland 600 years before the Sultanate was established adding that it was completely wrong to even have the Sultan as the head of Nigerian Muslims.

The movement said the Sultan as the head of Muslims in Nigeria was an imposition by the Nigerian military ruled by the Fulani and that it was time that leadership is challenged and changed by the people

“The Sultan and his agents want to replicate what is happening in Sokoto in Nigeria. They are not happy with the transfer of power from the Fulani hegemony. It’s all about 2027 and the strategy is to polarise and cause confusion across the country.

AYDM said “The Sultan cannot teach Islam to Yoruba people. For over 600 years, millions of Yoruba people had embraced Islam before the Fulani came to Sokoto. The Sultan only came through violence in 1804 with the brutal desire to take over the country called Nigeria by force of arms of arms.”

AYDM said “We urge the Sultan to temper his desperation to spread his own brand of Islam to Yorubalad by force. We urge him to concentrate on taming the spread of violence and spineless killings between Hausa and Fulani in Sokoto State and across his Caliphate states. He should also stop the violence between Muslims, Christians and Traditional worshipers in his domain.

“Yoruba Muslims are peace lovers. All the adherents of the different religious in Yorubaland cannot be governed by different laws in the same country.”

It said Yoruba people for more than 1000 years, even before Christianity and Islam have been resolving disputes without Sharia. The Sultan cannot love Yoruba people including Muslims more than Yoruba people themselves.

“We as Muslims, Traditional worshipers and Christians in Yorubaland will never allow conscious attempts to destabilise Yorubaland. We are watching with keen interests and we are already mobilising our people to confront enemies of Yoruba people hiding under religion to cause mayhem and instability in our fatherland. We shall not allow it. We warn them to desist from their plots

Sokoto said the Yoruba do not need the Sultan to access God who is ominipresent neither does the Yoruba need to learn anything for politica,givernance and economy of Sokoto State.

“The agenda of the Sultan and his paid agents will be resisted in Yorubaland. There will be no room for the continuation of the 1804 Jihad under any guise,” the AYDM said.