Opinion

El-Rufai’s De-invitation: Prof Akintola is stoking war fire

By Christie Doyin
Can’t truly remember last time I felt this happy reading reactions, comments and the likes. But I can assure you that reading Lasisi Olagunju’s reaction tagged ‘El-Rufai goes to law school’ gave me the thrill. I felt happy and contented that there are still many a responsible and reasonable persons within the religious enclave of this country, Muslims and Christians alike.
El-Rufai was actually not the target but a supposedly erudite professor and leader of a religious rights group, Professor Ishaq Akintola of Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC).
A man who ought to from time to time feed us with the truth and direct our steps and heart to the ways of God and the teaching of the holy Prophet Mohammed (SWA).
I was more than disappointed reading the call out of the MURIC leader but the Olagunju’s writeup was able to douse the heated feelings in my mind. “A nje ekuru ko tan enikan nwa gbon owo e sinu awo”. This is a period when the country is hypersensitive about religious matters and ethnicity but someone who should know better is now flaring the ember of the already smothering fire of religious and ethnic intolerance.
To say Prof Olagunju’s comments and reaction bolstered the smothering fire in some lawyers who decided to forget what united them for the faith that divided them. The Muslim lawyers, obviously dancing to the tune played by the head of MURIC decided to be identified as Muslim lawyers. To say that is not childish and outlandish is being economical with the truth.
I can’t imagine the supposedly learned persons hinging a faction on religious line. When i read the report that “A new faction with the name, New Nigerian Bar Association, (NNBA) emerged on Thursday. It is led by lawyers from the core North…” I could only take a deep sigh and shook my head for what I termed an “unfortunate development”.
According to the report, “The new group said the formation …was informed by the recent developments in the Nigerian Bar Association, (NBA) which was plunged into crisis following the disagreement on the invitation of Kaduna State Governor, Mallam El Rufai as a Guest at the NBA conference.
…“peddling of sectional interests”, the group noted that the recent rumblings from the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) is leaving much to be desired within the ranks of Concerned Lawyers, especially from Northern part of the Country.
The report noted further that the group stated “What has been happening recently has exposed the inability of the NBA to manage and contain the heterogeneity of it’s members as well as their various interests. It’s penal powers has been deployed discriminatively on the basis of ethnicity and regionalism.”
So what are we saying here? Are we saying there are no Christian lawyers who are bonafide sons and daughters of Northern Nigeria?
These were all summed up in Olagunju’s writeup when he wrote inter alia that “…Professor Ishaq Akintola of Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) assisting Kaduna State Governor, Mallam Nasir el-Rufai to cry because the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) spilt his milk last week”.
Why Akintola decided to cry more than the bereaved and as a result caused disharmony has left not a few Nigerians bewildered. Akintola said the decision of the NBA to withdraw an invitation to el-Rufai to speak at its Annual General Conference (AGC) was a declaration of war”. For God sake, how, why and what for?
Reports have it that some lawyers had earlier alleged that mercurial el-Rufai had “on several occasions abused the rights of Nigerians” and been disdainful of courts and their orders. Because of that, they vowed that he should not be seen addressing an assembly of freedom lovers. What will he be teaching us?
Are this not enough justification for any one or group of persons, especially the “learned persons” to refused to allow the Kaduna State Governor El-Rufai talk to them on matters such as these to which he has allegedly grossly erred?
The NBA NEC met and decided not to have him on the rostrum talking tongue in cheeks “quietly borrowed itself some ‘sense’ by withdrawing the babanriga it decked the governor with” according to Olagunju, who went further to say that “While utterly disappointed el-Rufai sulked and walked off it, an implacably angry Akintola of MURIC wouldn’t take it. He came out, emitting fire from his mouth and nostrils: “All lawyers from the North should …boycott NBA’s AGC in protest against this open declaration of war on Northern Kaduna,” Akintola said. How sad and unfortunate?!
Actually, Akintola is someone I had silently admired as a voice to reckon with compared to our Christian leaders, who often keep mute when they should speak against wrongs done against their faith. But now, the cloak of deceit has been removed and the true person of the Professor has been brought to the fore. Akintola may be considered to be a religious bigot.
Don’t blame me for being elated st Lasisi Olagunju’s submissons and questions in his article, he touched every area and questions that rushed through my head when I read through the Professor’s outcry.
According to him, “When the MURIC man was giving that boycott order to lawyers from the North, had he forgotten that he was from Ile-Ife and not from Sokoto or Daura? In the pecking order known to Nigeria, no one from Akintola’s South is allowed to be that rude to the grand masters. Some lawyers in Kaduna, Bauchi and Jigawa who have indicated revulsion at NBA’s decision have not said Akintola’s MURIC gave them the inspiration to do so. A butterfly that counts itself a bird will have problems ultimately. I thought MURIC said its name is about Muslim rights! So, where is the correlation between el-Rufai’s abortive NBA outing and the religious rights of Muslims? – I wonder!
“When he said “no single lawyer from the North should participate in the annual general meeting,” was he speaking for Christian lawyers from the North too? Or this Professor did not know that there are lawyers from the North who are not Muslims? And is Southern Kaduna not in the North with its own fair share of the membership of the NBA? Again, when he aligned himself so blatantly in support of Northern Kaduna, had he convinced himself that there was no Muslim in Southern Kaduna whose right deserved to be protected by the self-appointed Muslim rights enforcer? Or is the whole thing truly about buying and selling, business and profit? When religion becomes an item in the trader’s tray, even if the article is further encased in activism, it won’t take long for the simple buyer to regain his sense and lenses.” I can only rest my case with this submission from Olagunju.
To say the truth, we have both Muslim and Christian lawyers who are and will remain best of friends and couples till eternity. These are learned men and women who know that the law and the justice there enclosed is deemed blind to many things, especially such rubbish that could make nonsense of all they represent if care is not taken.
I call only doff my hat for Governor El-Rufai for his initial reaction of taking the whole thing in his strides, though he felt hurt that he could be so de-invited.
Mr Paul Usoro, the Christian NBA president who presided over the NEC where the de-invitation of El-Rufai was decided has apologised and told the governor that he was overwhelmed by the nay voices, meaning majority of the lawyers were against the governor’s invite.
I wouldn’t want to consider that as humiliation of the governor, I can only see it as an expression of rights by the learned persons.
I agree with the submission that it is better that “Professor Akintola sticks strictly to the self-chosen mandate of MURIC – defence of rights of Muslims of Nigeria.”
I want to give kudos to the Emir of Ilorin, the Sultan of Sokoto, the late emir of Bauchi, Alh Adamu Jimba if I remember his name clearly. They are and were so tolerant of other religions that I feel they should receive special call out for this. We have other Muslim leaders too that would not look at issues along religious divide but solely on their merits.
For the NBA members, fair play is of utmost importance. If what reports stated is true that there are dome others who were indicted same as the governor or even worse than, they my take is that all the invited guests and speakers so indicted should be dropped while a new invite list is drawn.
It was reported in some quarters that “the NBA failed to extend the same treatment to Southern invitees who were also petitioned and are also alleged to have committed similar or more human rights abuses than those alleged against Mallam El-Rufai.” If this is also true then, the NBA should also be deemed as erring against the rules of equity and fairness.
However, my take is that it is about time we shelve our swords on matters of religion and ethnicity to avoid wars and infighting that lead the people nowhere but to self destruction and decimation.
*Doyin writes from Ilorin via e-mail: [email protected]

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