Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka has called for the sack of the Imam of National Mosque, Abuja, Prof. Ibrahim Maqari, for justifying the killing of Deborah Emmanuel by Islamic fanatics
He accused the Islamic cleric of inciting his followers to take the law into their hands in the name of religion.
Maqari spoke in Abuja during the one year remembrance of the late former Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt.-Gen. Ibrahim Attahiru, organised by the foundation established by his widow, Mrs. Fati Attahiru.
The eminent scholar condemned the rising cases of lynching of people in the name of religion, calling for an end of such act.
He said: “In the name of all, while I’ve given that all for all, I demand that Prof. Maqari be removed from office.
“That Prophet Muhammad set this or that good example; admit this or that humanistic pronouncement? We’ve gone beyond theocratic rhetoric that merely pays lip service to civilised conduct that all artistic denunciations be backed by affirmative action. We have already continued to pay too high price for the culture of appeasement and impunity.
“Let it end now in the name of all those who have served this nation and given their lives for this nation. But the new generation should also be programmed to aspire to brutish existence below the lowest common denominator of what constitutes human.”