Why we demolished worship places � el-Rufai
The minister of FCT, Malam Nasir el-Rufai has defended his demolition of 770 religious houses in FCT, saying they were illegally erected.
el-Rufai, the chief host of the annual Ramadan lecture of Al-Habibiyah Academy, Abuja, said the structures were not accommodated in the Abuja master plan.
He said 700 of the affected structures belonged to various churches, while 70 belonged to some Islamic associations.
“We met at the ministry and took the decision to demolish 700 illegal churches and 70 illegal mosques that were not in accordance with the master plan and the law of God,” he said.
He lamented that some of the areas designated for religious purposes in FCT had been sold to some private individuals for residential and other purposes.
el-Rufai also decried the attitude of some Muslim leaders, who he said, sold land meant for mosques and Islamic schools to other people for their private use.
“I thought we will be commended for sanitising the situation and reverting to the original master plan, instead we were called apostates and all sorts of names even by Muslims,” he said.
He recalled that the Holy Prophet Muhammed was the first in history to demolish illegal mosques, and he was not tagged apostate, saying his action was in line with the injunctions of God, which upheld fairness and justice.
The minister said with the computerisation of land related matters, land speculation and arbitrary allocations were now a thing of the past.
In his remarks, the special guest of honour and Vice-President Atiku Abubakar expressed concern that Muslims’ level of devotion did not reflect in their public conduct.
Abubakar, represented by Rep. Usman Bugaje, appealed to everybody to reflect on the teachings of Ramadan messages and make sure they put them into practice.
Earlier in his welcome speech, the Imam of the academy, Alhaji Adeyemi Fuad said the academy established as a platform to impact knowledge of the Holy Qur’an to willing but busy Muslims.
In his brief lecture, Ustaz Abubakar Sadiq, who stood in for Prince Bola Ajibola, the guest lecturer, stressed the need for Muslims to see fasting as a training period for Muslims, in which the good deeds done therein must not be limited to the period.
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