Eid-il-Fitri: MURIC wants pardon for 54 soldiers over Boko Haram fights
As Muslims celebrate the eid-il-fitri marking the end of this year’s Ramadan, the Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) has urged President Muhammadu Buhari to revisit the plight of the 54 soldiers imprisoned for refusing to fight Boko Haram insurgents with poor weapons. The MURIC Director, Prof. Ishaq Akintola, said in a statement on Friday that the […]
As Muslims celebrate the eid-il-fitri marking the end of this year’s Ramadan, the Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) has urged President Muhammadu Buhari to revisit the plight of the 54 soldiers imprisoned for refusing to fight Boko Haram insurgents with poor weapons.
The MURIC Director, Prof. Ishaq Akintola, said in a statement on Friday that the call is imperative as Ramadan is the month of mercy, its beginning a blessing; its middle is for forgiveness while its end is freedom.
He noted that the 54 soldiers were sentenced to life imprisonment before their sentences were commuted to 10 years imprisonment.
“MURIC sees the 54 soldiers as whistle-blowers, not criminals because they actually exposed the $2.1 billion arms fraud. It is a sad paradox that while other whistle-blowers are being rewarded, the 54 soldiers are languishing in jail.
“In the spirit of the forgiveness and freedom which the middle and end of Ramadan stand for, we appeal to Mr. President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to, in exercise of the prerogative of mercy, grant presidential pardon to the 54 soldiers.
“We call on civil society, particularly anti-corruption crusaders to speak out for the 54 soldiers. We also remind state governors and state chief judges to use the occasion to visit prisons in their states with a view to setting free a large number of inmates particularly those awaiting trial,” Akintola said.
He also felicitates with the Sultan of Sokoto and President-General of the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA), Alhaji Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar on the celebration and also congratulates the Muslim Ummah and the entire Nigerian citizenry for successfully observing this year’s Ramadan.