Leading Muslim Clerics across the country under the auspices of the Council of Ulamas of Nigeria, on Tuesday lauded the cooperation between the Senate and the Executive in the fight against terrorism in the country.
The Council made the commendation when its leadership visited the Senate President, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, in Abuja.
Secretary General of the Council, Professor Mohammed Sadiq Abubakar, who stated this in his remarks, also said the cooperation contributed in no small measure in defeating terrorists and insurgents in the North East.
He urged the two arms of government (executive and legislature), to further strengthen their relationship “as it is the people at the grass roots that will suffer from any quarrel between them.”
“We are happy about the fence mending and reconciliation efforts of the President with the Senate. I was happy when I read that the Senate President in a newspaper interview said that there is no quarrel between the executive and the Senate,” he said.
He however traced the origin of the legislature to the time of Prophet Mohammed, when he set up a people’s Assembly comprising representatives of muslims and non Muslims when he migrated to Medina.
The Council of Ulama of Nigeria, he said, was established 31 years ago to unite the Ulama from all the Islamic sects for the purpose of stability within adherents of the Islamic religion and the nation in general, saying that, “our membership is drawn from all Islamic sects without any form of discrimination.”
On his part, Chairman of the Council, Sheik Abdullahi Abubakar Tureta, commended the Senate President for his patience and resoluteness in the face of political travails since his emergence as Senate President.
“We praise you for that and we are not surprised looking at your family background and we urge you to continue to be patient and persevere as the Almighty Allah promised to be with the patient one,” Tureta said.
While reminding the Senate President about the burden of leadership, Tureta added that the responsibility for the welfare of all Nigerians has been placed on both the executive and the legislature as he added that “If the two of you cooperate, everything will go well with the country, but if you work at cross-purposes, only the Almighty God knows what will befall the country.”
Responding, the Senate President commended the Council for uniting all Islamic scholars under one umbrella, a development that has contributed immensely to the stability and progress of not only the Islamic religion but that of the nation.
He expressed the commitment of the Senate to make the county better by passing laws that make would positive impact in the life of the citizenry.
Saraki said: “We are trying our best to ensure that we pass laws that will make direct positive impact on Nigerians. I want to also use this opportunity to assure you that whatever laws we pass here, will be sensitive to the religious values of the whole Nigeria.
“I say that again, whatever laws we pass here, will be respectful to the religious beliefs of our people. We will not do anything that will in anyway go against that,” he said.
He further stated that the Senate is working hard to replicate the successes achieved in the fight against terrorism, in the fight against corruption and the revival of the economy.
“We thank God for the success we have made in the fight against corruption and I am sure that the progress will be extended to the economy in order to put this country in a better place,” he said.
