Letter to Nigerian Muslims

I write this piece to you as a Muslim brother and a citizen, who is deeply concerned about the gory happenings in this country and who as well prays for its betterment. It is an undeniable fact that the trying time Nigerians live in is uncalled for. It is not what the citizens prayed for. Thus, […]

Letter to Nigerian Muslims
Letter to Nigerian Muslims

I write this piece to you as a Muslim brother and a citizen, who is deeply concerned about the gory happenings in this country and who as well prays for its betterment. It is an undeniable fact that the trying time Nigerians live in is uncalled for. It is not what the citizens prayed for. Thus, it has indicted the leadership of all the three arms of government in the country, unfortunately.

If the government had worked holistically towards curbing the menace, the situation couldn’t have been worse. But would the inferno ignited, due to the nonchalant attitude of our leaders that seem to have been politicising virtually everything, be left consuming the spirit and the fabrics of our dear nation?  

Truth be told, even a responsible and serious government can’t fight a politically created conflagration of multiple fronts alone, let alone a government with lackadaisical attitude. As Muslims of the ravaging country, therefore, we all have a role to play, be it individually or collectively.

As we witness the first quarter of the month of Ramadan which has the best nights therein and in which the glorious Qur’an has been revealed, we need to cry hard, for God, the Almighty, to come to the rescue of our nation.

We must look inward and outward and return to God; the most merciful, the most powerful, the compassionate and the absolute compeller. We should desist from committing sins and repent from our misdeeds. We should give charity, recite the glorious Qur’an, supplicate and intensify prayers to God to see to the end of this mess.

Religious scholars should use their might during tafsir, Imams during their Juma’a sermons should pray immensely on this matter. Let Him choose for us the rightful leaders of all cadres. Let God the Almighty leave us not to our wisdom and selfish wishes and choices.

We can’t fold our hands, legs crossed, witnessing the downfall of this country under the watch of our leaders whom we entrusted but failed us. Let us all wake up from our slumbers and do the needful at the right time. May we be governed by leaders that love us so much more than how we love them; leaders that give priority to the interest of our societies morre than their interests; leaders that think about giving the account of their leadership on the day of reckoning.

Muhammad Rabiu Jibrin (Mr J) wrote from Gombe [email protected]