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The two-day forum convened last Monday at the Presidency through the Office of the Senior Special Assistants to the President on Islamic and Christian Affairs with Special Advisers on Religious Affairs from the 36 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory is quite a welcome development. With the theme "Towards Synergising and Interfacing in the Religious Sector for National Development," the meeting comes amidst the escalation of the war waged against the nation by the Boko Haram insurgents, mostly in the North East of the Country.
The sect has killed over ten thousand Nigerians, including Christians and Muslims, sacked towns and villages displacing millions, ruined commerce, damaged property worth billions of naira, and even threatening to annex vast swath of territory as its 'caliphate'. The inhuman abduction of the Chibok school girls, with over 200 of them still languishing in captivity is one of the atrocities of Boko Haram. This has occurred despite the efforts of the Nigerian armed forces to repel the attacks and contain the insurgents who unjustifiably claim affinity to Islam. Given the bleak scenario, the inter-faith religious dialogue definitely offered opportunity to explore the prospect of exploring a non-military solution towards ending the devastating insurgency and ensuring religious harmony in the country.
A notable fallout from the Abuja forum according to media reports was a remark of the President of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Pastor Ayo Oritsejeafor while responding to a speech by the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa'ad Abubakar 111. He had advised the Sultan to write a letter to Boko Haram to stop their attacks, as he did to the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS). "His Eminence said he wrote a letter to ISIS. I have to truly congratulate you for that because that was a very good move. "I didn't know about it until today and I am so glad it happened. But I want to appeal that you also write to Boko Haram because Boko Haram is worse than ISIS. They have killed more people than ISIS. They have caused more atrocities than ISIS; they need to be written to as well. It is very important. It will help." It is unfortunate that most media reports tended to present the dialogue between the sultan and the CAN leader as if they were in conflict or at cross purposes over the insurgency. This, in our view, is rather unhelpful as it distracts from the noble focus of the parley with the religious leaders which was aimed at sincere ventilation of ideas towards addressing the current challenge of insurgency cloaked in a religious toga. There is no doubt that the Boko Haram insurgency poses a real threat to religious tolerance and freedom of worship as they continue to declare jihad against persons of different religious persuasion.
This newspaper commends the initiatives of Sultan Abubakar 111 toward ending Boko Haram and ISIS terrorism and insurgency in Nigeria and Syria/Iraq respectively, and forging religious peace in Nigeria. We urge the revered leader of Nigerian Muslims to accept the CAN leader's request as a call to go the extra mile in mobilising Islamic leaders across the country to find a lasting solution to Boko Haram insurgency. For instance, the Sultan can liaise with other Islamic leaders in the North, Niger Republic, Chad and Northern Cameroon to reach out to Boko Haram leaders to persuade them to lay down their arms, free the abducted Chibok girls, table their grievances and embrace dialogue with the federal government. The Sultan could offer in the national interest to broker a truce between the sect and the government which had earlier offered to grant Amnesty to the militants if they lay down their arms.
Another critical aspect of insurgency that religious leaders can intervene, besides prayer is to mobilize their faithful to donate funds and raise aid personnel to complement the efforts of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) and some northern state governments to provide food, shelter, clothing, medical care and educational facilities to millions of displaced Nigerians from the war torn north-east.
We urge the presidency to collate the resolutions from the Abuja round table with Advisers on Religious Affairs and religious leaders and channel them appropriately to ensure religious harmony in the country. The religious leaders must guard against, and report to the authorities those of them preaching extremist messages that promote religious intolerance and violence - the kind that produced Boko Haram.
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