Muslim-Muslim ticket yet to change Muslims’ plight - Shari’ah council

 The Supreme Council for Shari’ah in Nigeria (SCSN) has expressed disappointment over the 2023 elections Muslim-Muslim ticket of President Bola Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima, stating that it has not yielded the expected benefits for the Muslim community.

The Guardian reported that Speaking at a Pre-Ramadan Lecture, the President of SCSN, Sheikh Abdurrasheed Hadiyyatullah said;

“We have seen Nigerians vote for people of the same Islamic faith into the Presidency without turning the country into an unceasing battlefield, but we have not seen justice and equity done to all communities, irrespective of their faith.

“Millions of Muslims are politically marginalized in many parts of the country, despite their numbers and the constitutional demands for justice, and we see a nation growing in indifference over Muslim grievances.

“As we speak, we are witnessing an alarming and crude attempt to muscle South West Muslims out of their rights to organize perfectly legitimate mechanisms that will assist them to improve how they live with fellow Christians as members of families and communities.

“We stand in solidarity with our brothers and sisters in the South West and we advise those who think they can divide the Nigerian Muslim Umma to find other mischief to engage themselves.”

“The Umma looks up to us for guidance and assurances that their faith will not be sacrificed on the altar of political opportunism and greed. Many Muslims are being encouraged to think they have been betrayed to vote for this administration.

 

Hadiyyatullah also raised concerns over the worsening economic hardship in the country.

“Nigerians are experiencing severe economic hardship, exacerbated by some government policies. The removal of fuel subsidies has led to soaring costs of living, with food, transportation, and essential goods becoming increasingly unaffordable.”

 

“The Council has consistently advised the administration on adopting policies to address the hardship.

 

“However, it is alarming that, within a short period, the government has introduced multiple new taxes and tariffs, including increased telecommunications tariffs (50%), FOB charges (4% of imports), NPA tariffs (15%), ATM charges (100%), and additional proposed electricity tariff hikes,” Sheikh Hadiyyatullah said.