Igbo Muslim Forum unhappy about the delay in appointing a southeastern imam at the National Mosque in Abuja

IGBO Muslims have expressed their displeasure at the delay in appointing an Igbo imam for the National Mosque Abuja as promised by the Sultan of Sokoto and the president of the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCISA) Alhaji Muhammadu Abubakar Sa’ad.

Following the NSCIA's sixth Extended General Purpose Committee on October 9, 2017, when the Murshid of the Mosque was appointed, Sultan Sa'd promised that an Igbo imam would be named too. However, according to the Igbo Muslim Forum (IMF), this promise is yet to be kept, making them feel like second class Muslims.

According to the IMF, the sultan made the promise to erase any tribal attachment on the Imamship of the national institution, considering the fact that the three imams under the Murshid are two Hausas and one Yoruba one. IMF officials explained that when the promise was made, the Igbo Muslims were happy to be carried along by the sultan but it has been too long since the promise made and by now, it should have been fulfilled.

In a statement signed by the coordinator and secretary of the forum, Suleman Afikpo and Dr Muhammad Amaechi, the IMF  recalled a recent convention convened in Abuja by the South East Muslims of Nigeria where some members of the Igbo Muslim Ummah expressed displeasure over the promise described by some as normal lip service.  They said that the matter had become a subject of discussion at every forum of the organisation.

"The acquiescence of the president-general of NSCIA, echoed further by his secretary, published in all the major Nigerian dailies after their meeting of the 6th Extended General Purpose Committee in October 9, 2017, was one pronouncement that placed smile on the faces of every Igbo Muslim. In readiness, we converged in a general meeting that screened and produced three eligible scholars from amongst us for the duty.

A follow-up letter dated 16th April 2018 was disseminated but for over a year now, there has not been any response to our letter nor the said imamate position filled. While we wait in anticipation, we grieve and grumble at the neglect being meted on us," their statement added.