IBRAHIM QUADRI
The Special Adviser to the Lagos State Governor on Islamic Matters, Dr. Abdullahi Jebe has shared insights into how the state government, under Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has maintained the peace and religious harmony enjoyed in Lagos.
Speaking with journalists in Ikeja, Dr. Jebe explained that the state’s development strategy was first established during President Bola Tinubu’s tenure as governor and has been further refined by subsequent administrations.
Having previously served as the Senior Special Adviser on Religious Matters under both President Tinubu and ex-Governor Babatunde Fashola, Jebe emphasized that the effective coordination of religious groups in Lagos has played a key role in fostering unity.
He highlighted that the state government, through his office, has cultivated strong relationships with key stakeholders, through the Nigeria Inter-Religious Council NIREC, which has its offices across the states, and this has ensured peaceful coexistence among Muslims and Christians, thereby contributing to the overall religious harmony in Lagos
According to him “In the past, whenever the government wanted to reach out to the religious bodies, it used to deal directly with the head of religious organisations through the five divisions of the state and when Babajide Sanwo-Olu came, he extended the reach beyond the divisions and ensured that everyone enjoyed the dividends from the government and this was made possible because the state already have their records and numbers. Leaders in these five divisions are headed by the Chief Imams and there are other Islamic organisations, muslim scholars, Islamic teachers and Arabic schools that are now incorporated into the system whenever there are opportunities from the government.”
He said the recent food palliative distributed by the state government to the religious associations was shared among the 20 local government and 37 local council development areas through the quota within the division of the state.
On the feat recorded in Hajj operations in the past years, the Special Adviser said that numerous interventions of the administration of Babajide Sanwo-Olu to ease the burden of pilgrims to the holy land Makkah have been tremendous.
He said: “President Tinubu attended the Lesser Hajj in the year 2000 and in 2001, it was during exercise that he observed the challenges that people faced at Mount Arafat, was able to address the feeding issues for the pilgrims at that year and also paid for the Ihram clothes for the pilgrims. So, President Tinubu set a platform of support for pilgrims during the Hajj exercise which was followed by other governors’ initiatives, and the Sanwo-Olu’s magnanimous interventions changed the faces of pilgrimage in Lagos State”.
He paid money for the rams slaughtered by the pilgrims, visitation to the religious sites in Medina and Makkah, Ihram clothes and also catered for the feeding the pilgrims at the Mount of Arafat in Makkah.
The governor’s aide, however, urged citizens of Lagos to continue to support the programmes and policies of the government while challenging religious bodies to preach good parenting to their followers while emphasis must be paid to quality child upbringing towards the development of the state and the nation.
For a better society
_______________________________
Follow us across our platforms:
Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/championnewsonline/
Facebook – https://web.facebook.com/championnewsonline
LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/company/champion-newspapers-limited/
https://x.com/championnewsng/
You can also like and comment on our YouTube videos.
https://youtu.be/QIBfD1tT80w?si=R4Qf3so2LxYu3GC2
