A professor at the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, Ogun State, Professor Abideen Olaiya, has urged Muslims to participate in political activities as this will earn them opportunity to benefit from reward embedded in politics.
He said Muslims have to show interest in what is going on in political circle in Ondo State and the country in general to secure their righful positions in political system in order to put an end to the third-class community the Muslim Ummah are experiencing from having a say at the helms of affairs.
The Don spoke at the 18th public lecture organized by the League of Imams, Akure land with the topic “Aftermath of Election: Gain or Pain” in Akure, the Ondo State capital.
He said participating in the political process would facilitate and ease the affairs of Muslims in their quest to develop and transform the country through their God-given talents.
Olaiya who noted that nothing muslims can point at as a gain, except the virtue of the president being a muslim, the sense of belonging that one of them is a president and the belief that their right will not be trampled upon was optimistic that the Tinubu-led Federal Government will favour muslims.
“We are yet to have the gain of having president of the country as a muslim.
“His fight against corruption starting from his cabinet is an indication that the president is in control of the government ” he noted.
Going down memory lane, the Don noted that Muslim has never been the Ondo State governor
since the creation of the state, while Christians
in Kaduna, Taraba, Kogi, Osun and Oyo States requested for similar positions and were considered.
He, therefore, maintained that there was no reason Muslim should not be given or elected into such position.
He urged them to be united and participate actively in politics for them to produce the next governor in the state with their 40 percent population.
Speaking with journalists, the State Governor , Mr.Lucky Aiyédatiwa who was represented by the State Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Alhaji Amidu Takuro, assured muslims in the state of his administration readiness to give equal right to religious body.
On the agitation that Muslim should be considered for the deputy Governor’s position, he said his government will do justice to who will occupy the position.
He further maintained that permutation on capacity,trust, competency and personality on who to become deputy governor is important in politics, adding that numerous muslims are available with potentials to be chosen as the deputy governor.
The Chief lmam of Akure Kingdom, Alhaji Abdulhakeem Yayi-Akorede; former State Deputy Governor, Alhaji Abdullasisi Oluboyo; Chairman of the occasion and Olurese of Irese land, Oba Ahmed Saka represented by Zakariya Abdulrauf and Professor Ishaq Amoo, harped on the need for muslims in the state to have more unity among themselves and play politics according to its rule for them to achieve their political ambition.
Also, the Chairman, Special Duty, Committee of the organization, Imam Ismail Ododoloto, said the lecture was organized to ease the hardship confronting people after the 2023 general election, noting that the ethnicity and vote-buying among other challenges which characterized elections in the country have been a thing of the past after the conduct of the general election.
He lamented on the marginalisation of southwest muslims in the appointments of Tinubu-led Federal Government which he said will not be good enough for the federal government and the muslims in the region if they are not favourably considered.
