Stay Away From Protest, MURIC Tells Muslims

Ishaq Akintola, the leader of a Muslim rights body, MURIC on Monday cautioned Muslims and Nigerians in general against joining any fresh protest

“The attention of MURIC has been drawn to subterranean rumblings as precursors of demonstrations, Mr. Akintola said.“We like to remind Nigerian Muslims in particular and all citizens in general that the last experience we had during #EndSARS protests was very bitter as it pushed the country to the edge of the precipice.

The MURIC leader said there was an injunction in the Holy Quran which forbids muslims from protesting against injustice.

“It says, ‘Join hands together in good deeds and piety. But do not join others to commit sin and aggression’ (Qur’an 5:2).

“This is a clear injunction directed at Muslim faithful and it is enough for them to steer clear of any new protest,” Mr. Akintola said.

He alleged that the proponents of protests seek to deceive Nigerians into causing chaos to achieve an ulterior motive.

“We should not allow anyone to deceive us into joining a rudderless protest again.

“We must not join any fresh protest under whatever guise. Leaderless protests lead to chaos. Leaderless protests come with awful intentions. We should not join them.

“The last demonstration has taught us a bitter lesson, namely, that it is difficult to know the true intention of any protest. They may start peacefully but graduate to violent outings,” he said.

Mr. Akintola agrees that protests are legitimate as long as they are peaceful but said there was “undisputable evidence” showing that funds for the #EndSARS protest were provided by people who lack integrity and whose sources of income lack credibility, though he did not provide the evidence.

(NAN)