The Nation Newspaper

Tag: muslim cleric

  • Alleged defamation: Muslim cleric demands apology from colleagues

    A Muslim cleric , Sheik Imuran Abdulmojeed Eleha has asked two other preachers, Jamiu Adegunwa and one Ismail Salahudeen to retract an alleged defamation and publish an apology in two national daily newspapers within seven days.

    The demand was contained in a statement issued on June 6,2019  by a lawyer , Mr Mobolaji Adejumo.

    Adegunwa had accused Eleha of fraudulent diversion of money he collected from international donor into his pocket.

    According to Adejumo, the preacher also published the defamatory information on his Facebook page.

    ‘’Our brief revealed that you and one Ismail Salahudeen were engaged in a recorded telephone discussion, wherein you both alleged that our client received some money in foreign grant  meant to alleviate the sufferings of Muslims awaiting trial  and other inmates of Ikoyi prisons and that our client diverted the money into his private use. And that when he was returning the said rams, he videod the event and sent video clips abroad by lying to donors that he makes gift of rams to the impoverished.

    Read Also: Muslim clerics trained on anti-corruption skills

    ‘’ You went further on your Facebook page and in a live publication titled ‘Oro ton nlo lori Ikoyi Prison’’ made to the world at large but which was well-downloaded within the jurisdiction of the High Court of Lagos State, wherein, you rehashed the same lies in the recorded phone conversation between you and the said Salaudeen.

    ‘’While at that, you also alleged that you had an unsavoury encounter with our client with respect to Ileya rams. You said our client by deceit asked people to bring their rams into his custody in order to avoid the clampdown of government.

    ‘’In the light of these we demand on behalf of our client within seven days of the receipt of this letter, an unreserved apology on your Facebook page, and on social media platform of Twitter and Instagram , and the apology must be given the same prominence as the offensive stories.

    ‘’ We also demand an unreserved apology in two nationally circulating  newspapers and such apology must be at least a quarter of a page.’’

    Contacted, the duo promised to revert to our correspondent by yesterday evening, but they did not do so at press time.

    However, a man who introduced himself on the telephone as Alhaji Hubatullahi Salako, a lawyer, said efforts were on to settle the matter amicably.

    He said: ‘’ My name is Hibatullahi Salako, the Balogun Musulumi of Ota, Ogun State. I have intervened in the matter between Ustaz Jamiu Adegunwa, Ismail Salahudeen and Sheik Eleha.

    ‘’I am calling on behalf of Adegunwa, who informed me that you called to hear his side of the story, but we are trying to resolve the impasse. I have initiated talks with Sheik Eleha and we are to see him again in a few days’ time, but I understand he is travelling out of the country. But he has given me the contact of who to talk to in his absence.

    Alhaji Salako, who is a former National President of Muslim Lawyers Association of Nigeria and ex-chairman of Nigeria Bar Association (NBA)Ota Chapter, Ogun State, added that another meeting would be held in two weeks to finally resolve the matter amicably.

     

  • Muslim cleric, hospital attendant paraded for ‘stealing placenta’

    There was a mild drama yesterday, as a Muslim cleric and a hospital attendant blamed one another over the alleged theft and sale of a baby placenta in Ilorin, Kwara State.

    The police command paraded Mrs. Fatima Suleiman, a hospital attendant and Salaudeen Ibrahim, an Islamic cleric, for allegedly conspiring to buy and sell a baby placenta.

    Mrs. Suleiman, who was working in a private hospital, was alleged to have sold the placenta to the Muslim cleric last week.

    Police Commissioner Kofowora Bolaji said: “Upon successful caesarian operation, the doctor at the private hospital handed over the newborn baby to Suleiman Fatima of Agaka, Ilorin, to give to the biological father of the baby. But instead, the suspect gave the placenta to Alfa Salaudeen Ibrahim to use for rituals, with the intention of getting monetary reward from him (Alfa Ibrahim).”

    He said investigation was on, adding that after the investigation, the suspects would be arraigned.

    Fielding questions from reporters, Alfa Ibrahim said: “I read Islamic Studies from Al-Hikmah University, Ilorin. I graduated in 2016.

    “A month ago, Mrs. Suleiman came to me and asked if a baby placenta could be used for rituals and I answered in the affirmative. That was the

    last thing I discussed with her and she left. She said she is an

    attendant in a hospital and some people leave their babies’ placenta for them to dispose of.

    “She came with one about five days ago. She dropped the placenta. Later I called her to come and take it away. She refused. Thereafter she called me that the incident had been reported to the police. I did not want to be implicated, so I threw the placenta into a nearby river. I thought with that I would get myself out of trouble.”

    Read also: Muslim cleric arrested with human parts in Lagos

    The hospital attendant denied collecting any money from the cleric, saying she is an intimate friend of his wife.

    She said: “He did not give me any money, but he told me to help him get a baby placenta. Since his wife is my friend, I did it. I acceded to his request because of my closeness to his wife. This is the first time I will engage in such nefarious activity.

    “I have three children and my children’s placenta were handed over to my husband. I never gave him my children’s placenta. When I called him, the story had taken a new twist. He said he had thrown the placenta into a river. He said the placenta would not be effective because the baby was delivered through caesarian section (CS).”

  • Muslim cleric, hospital attendant held for ‘stealing’ placenta

    A Muslim cleric and a hospital attendant have been arrested by the Kwara State Police Command for alleged theft and sale of a placenta.

    The Nation learnt that the attendant worked with a private hospital before her arrest.

    She was said to have allegedly sold the placenta to the cleric for N20,000, for rituals.

    Police spokesman Ajayi Okasanmi confirmed the arrest of the suspects.

    He said the attendant and the cleric were helping the police in their investigation.

    Okasanmi said they would be arraigned after investigation.

    It was gathered that the medical officer in charge of the private hospital reported the matter to the police, leading to the arrest of the suspects in Ilorin on Monday.

    The incident occurred at a private hospital in Oko-Erin, Ilorin.

    A source said trouble started when the father of the new baby, Jimoh Abdulfatah, demanded the placenta of his baby from the hospital.

    The source said the man had taken his wife to the hospital for a caesarian operation after unsuccessful efforts to have a normal delivery at the Civil Service Clinic and General Hospital, Ilorin.

    Abdulfatah said he was referred to the private hospital by a nurse at the General Hospital.

    He said following the stress he passed through for two days,

    he forgot to ask for the placenta when his wife was eventually delivered of the baby and came back later to ask for it.

    Abdulfatah said a senior nurse in the hospital told him that the nurse attendant on duty said she could no longer find the placenta.

    “It was at that point that the medical officer in charge of the hospital informed the police and the nurse attendant was arrested,” he said.

    The Muslim cleric, whose wife is also pregnant, was said to have told the police that the placenta was useless, as the baby was delivered through operation.

  • Muslim cleric arrested with human parts in Lagos

    Muslim cleric arrested with human parts in Lagos

    The Lagos State Police Command on Tuesday arrested an Islamic cleric, Alfa Kayode Abdul-Fatai in Alakuko area of the State for being in illegal possession of human parts including a female private organ.

    The suspect, who was arrested at No. 4, Okedumola Street, Off Obadare area of Alakuko, was said to have also been caught with female heart and a female lap discovered in his room.

    While confirming the arrest, Public Relations Officer of the State Police Command, SP Chike Oti, said the Islamic cleric was arrested following a tip off and investigation by the officers in the command.

    Oti said the suspect, during interrogation, revealed that the said human parts were given to him by an accomplice who has also been rounded up.

    According to Oti, the suspect and the accomplice would be charged to court at the end of investigation.

    He said the Commissioner of Police, Imohimi Edgal, particularly urged members of the public to be conscious of the activities of people living within their vicinity, and report any suspicious movement to law enforcement agencies.

    ”The CP urges members of the public to embark on ‘Operation Know Your Neighbour’, because the Alfa was staying in a compound without his neighbours knowing what he does for a living,” Oti said.

  • Badoo cult: Whistles, machetes now household necessities in Ikorodu

    Badoo cult: Whistles, machetes now household necessities in Ikorodu

    Residents of Ikorodu in Lagos State now sleep with machetes and whistles as survival strategies against the dreaded Badoo cult, terrorising the area.

    An investigation by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in the area on Tuesday revealed that virtually every household in Ikorodu now has whistles and machetes and other implements for self-defence.

    A resident in distress is expected to blow the whistle many times to signal the presence of Badoo cultists.

    It will be recalled that scores of women and some family members have been killed in the area in recent times, the latest being a family of five hacked to death in their sleep.

    Mr Kazeem Yusuf, the Chairman of the Egba-Otun Community Development Association (CDA) in Itaolowu, Ikorodu, told NAN that residents had resorted to self-help.

    He said that able bodied-people in families were being drafted by the CDA to participate in vigilance-keeping during the night.

    “It is the government that asked every CDA in Ikorodu to sensitise its members to the need to have whistles and machetes ready at hand, especially at nights.

    “The whistle when blown for long will indicate the presence of those terrorising us.

    “It will urge close residents to come to the aid of the `whistle blower so that the bad people can be over-powered,’’ he said.

    According to Mrs Yemisi Toluope, the Vice-Chair of Ereko-Central CDA at Muti, Ikorodu, residents are now united in their battle against the Badoo group.

    She commended the government of Lagos and Ogun States for working assiduously with the CDA to combat the menace of the group.

    “The CDA structure is the best way to get the people to be involved in their safety and survival,’’ she said.

    However, a cleric, who preferred not to be named, advised the residents not to adopt jungle justice in dealing suspected members of the cult.

    “Mob killing will only bring further curse and woes to Ikorodu.

    “No society grows in glory when it does not encourage natural justice.

    “We know that the Badoo cult has caused us heartache and pain but that is not enough reason for us to have recourse to jungle justice and burning and maiming suspects.

    “Our government must ensure that we the people do not condescend to the level of these miscreants and killers by our actions,’’ he argued.

    A Muslim cleric, who also pleaded anonymity, appealed to Ikorodu residents to allow the police take apprehended suspects into custody for further investigation.

    “Natural justice must rule over justice of the jungle,’’ he said.

     

  • ‘No clue on killers of family of six in Ogun’

    ‘No clue on killers of family of six in Ogun’

    No clue yet to the ‘insiders’ suspected  to have assassinated a Muslim cleric, Sheik Yussuf Abdul-Salam, his wife and four children in their home at the Atiba area of Odogbolu,  near Ijebu – Ode, Ogun State.

    Sheik Yusuf Abdulsalam Tanimola in his 30s, his wife and four children, including eight years old twins were found dead, in their home last Tuesday morning by their neighbours.

    The cleric was said to have been smashed to death with stone while his wife and children were hacked down with machetes by suspected killers, who stole into their home and murdered them in a pre – dawn attack.

    The Commissioner of Police, Ahmed Iliyasu, who had visited the scene to assess the situation, told journalists that the killing might have been perpetrated by an “insider” or with the help of an insider.

    “The trace of the modus that is used seems that there is work of an insider…It’s a constructive act; when we say constructive act, it means an act which is done by a knowledge of the inside of the place,” Iliyasu said.

    And check by The Nation revealed that there is no clue yet to the people that wiped out the Atiba family of six, no arrest have also been made but investigation  into the killing persists even as the Police have embarked on “massive manhunt to track down the killers” and apprehend them.

    The Police Public Relations Officer in the State, Abimbola Oyeyemi, told The Nation that there was no arrest yet but investigation continues.

    Abimbola added that the motive for the killing is also not yet established, but assured that the Police would get the killers.

     

  • Muslim cleric advocates peace centres

    Muslim cleric advocates peace centres

    A Rivers State-based Muslim cleric, Alhaji Abubakar Orlu has called for the establishment of a centre for inter-religious unity in the South-south and South-East zones of the country.

    Alhaji Orlu made the call during the Jama’atu Nasril Islam (JNI) Joint Committee Zonal Conference in Port Harcourt, the state capital.

    He noted that the establishment of the centre would go a long way in promoting peace, unity and co-operation among Muslims and Christians in the zones.

    The chairman JNI in the zones has also advised Islamic leaders in the zones to see the need for evangelism, urging them to take delight in rendering selfless service to God (Allah).

    “We must not only work but also be seen to have worked more vigorously, showing re-awakened interest and consistency in our efforts if we must remain more united and faithful.”

    He further charged them to intensify efforts in opening network of co-operation with the leadership of Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), and leaders of other religious faiths to ensure the plan for the centre was actualised.

    Lagos State Deputy Governor, Ajimobi’s wife, others urge more empowerment for women.