The Islamic Movement of Nigeria (IMN) has berated the Inspector General of Police, Abubakar Adamu for ordering the arrest of all Shiite leaders in the country, Afriupdate reports.
This news medium understands that the IMN in a statement on Sunday alleged that the President Muhammadu Buhari government is persecuting members of the group.
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According to them,” the Buhari administration, since its inception in 2015, has always used the commencement of the first month of the Islamic calendar, Muharram to persecute, kill and maim us and deny us any space to conduct all our religious rites expected of all Shi’ites.
“This recent order given on the eve of Muharram this year underlines the evil intention of the government to continue this pattern of attacks against Shia Islam and prevent us from conducting all our Muharram religious mourning obligations.”
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The group further said: “To this end, we want to draw the attention of well-meaning Nigerians and the international community to the fact that the major problem confronting this country is certainly not the free Zakzaky processions, but rather the security challenges characterized by incessant kidnappings, attacks by bandits and terror attacks in most parts of the North.
“The Sheikh Zakzaky-led Islamic Movement is not a security threat to Nigeria and Nigerians and has never ever been.
“Certainly, none of our religious rites, including the Ashura mourning sessions and its associated mourning procession or the moulud procession for which members of the Islamic Movement are well known for, can be of any threat to the nation. Even a child can attest to this fact.”
“It is therefore strange that a fresh attempt by this regime to use all the paraphernalia of its office to brutally kill, maim and imprison thousands of innocent Nigerians, simply because of their faith at such a difficult time being experienced by Nigerians.
“The Buhari administration cannot continue to hide its incompetence and inadequacies in remedying the major problems confronting Nigeria by manipulating religious sentiments simply to score some cheap political points.”
“Members of the Islamic Movement will most certainly remain steadfast and continue with all our religious programs and activities of Ashura mourning as well as the peaceful struggle for the freedom of Sheikh Zakzaky and the hundred others still in detention since the infamous Zaria genocide of December 2015.
We have since challenged the proscription order in court and should our rights and freedoms to worship be further infringed upon in any way, we will not hesitate to take all necessary legitimate measures to enforce our rights.”
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“We are the followers of Imam Husain (AS), the Grandson of Prophet Muhammad (SAW). We will never bow and submit to tyranny, oppression and extrajudicial killings.”
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