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Tag: Okunnu

  • Okunnu, cleric disagree with Sanusi on hajj rite

    Okunnu, cleric disagree with Sanusi on hajj rite

    Two renowned Islamic leaders, Alhaji Lateef Okunnu and Sheikh Dhikrullahi Shafi’i have disagreed with Emir of Kano and Nigeria‘s Amirul Hajj Alhaji Muhammad Sanusi II on skipping the devil stoning aspect of pilgrimage.

    Sanusi had advocated skipping the exercise because of overcrowding, which led to the stampede in which some pilgrims died on September 24.

    No fewer than 70 Nigerians are believed to have died in the stampede.

    Alhaji Sanusi told Sokoto pilgrims in the Holy Land that stoning of the devil was not worth the blood of any Muslim.

    He quoted the Qur’an and the sayings of Prophet Muhammad that refusal to even perform the stoning of devil rituals does not in any way invalidate one’s Hajj.

    His words: “During the era of Prophet Muhammad, he permitted pilgrims who came on camels to stay in Mecca after Arafat, instead of staying in Mina and sleeping at Muzdalifa.

    “So, if the Prophet could give such grace to some people, just to protect their animals, why didn’t our scholars educate our people properly to avoid this untoward hardship and death.

    “Therefore, it will be part of my recommendations to the Federal Government that, if we cannot get accommodation close to Jamrat where the Arabs reside in Mina, then this year may be the last time we will sleep in Mina and Muzdalifa because we want to stone the devil.

    “Besides that, if one deliberately refuses to even perform the stoning of the devil rituals, all he needs to do is to slaughter a ram. So, if this is the situation, why do we go and suffer and die instead of sacrificing a ram?”

    Yesterday, Okunnu, who was Nigeria‘s Amirul Hajj in 1973 said what the Emir Sanusi said was his personal opinion which is not binding on pilgrims.

    “The job of Nigeria’s Amirul Hajj is to recommend to the Federal Government and the stakeholders of which Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA) is playing a leading role, would examine. We’ll discuss that recommendation when we get to NSCIA meeting. The emir’s suggestion is open-ended,” he said.

    Okunnu, Ansar-Ud-Deen Society of Nigeria president urged Saudi Arabia to probe the incident to arrest a recurrence, saying: “We know Allah gives life and causes death to whomever and wherever He pleases. The people that died at Jamrat were not exempted. He gave them lives and He has taken them. We can only pray that this be the last of such incident. May we never have this kind of experience again.”

    Also yesterday, Sheikh Shafi’i, Mufti, Conference of Islamic Organisations (CIO), who hailed Emir Sanusi for delving into scholars’ area of expertise, noted that many monarchs have little knowledge about their religion.

    The renowned scholar said the issue of abstaining from devil stoning is not as straight forward as Sanusi observed.

    “That angle (Jamrat) is a whole topic under Islamic Jurisprudent (Fiqh); many internationally recognised scholars would have to issue a Fatwa (verdict) before any nation can say her pilgrims should abstain from Jamrat exercise,” he said.

    Besides, he said, moving African pilgrims tent in Mina closer to Jamrat is not a requisite to avoid stampede.

    “What about the other nations that had their tents closer to Jamrat and still lost some of their pilgrims? What should be done is proper investigation of how it happened and ensure a reoccurrence is avoided,” he said.

    According to him, the hadith (Prophetic sayings) quoted by Sanusi was misconstrued, adding that the Prophet never exempted anybody from stoning rather he (Prophet Muhammad) only permitted them to return to Mecca and come from there for the stoning.

  • Why Fed Govt can’t establish land registry, by Okunnu

    Why Fed Govt can’t establish land registry, by Okunnu

    When it comes to land matters, legal icon and former Federal Commissioner for Works Alhaji Femi Okunnu (SAN) is no push over. He is versed in land law. He challenged the decree  empowering the Federal Government to confiscate land within 100 metres of the sea shore in court and won. In this interview with Assistant Editor LEKE SALAUDEEN, Okunnu talks about contemporary issues on state land administration.

    Why did you take Federal Government to court over Lands Title Vesting?

     

    Former Military President Gen. Ibrahim Babangida promulgated a decree on Lands Title Vesting which empowered the Federal Government to appropriate or confiscate lands within 100 metres of the shore of the Atlantic Ocean belonging to whoever, whether states, firms or individuals. For example, any land from Benin Republic border to Cameroun border, within 100 metres of the sea shore, was simply expropriated without compensation. The decree vested the title on the Federal Government. It affected all the coastal states: Lagos, Ogun, Ondo, Edo, Delta, Bayelsa, Rivers, Akwa Ibom and Cross River.The one that affected Lagos in particular was the land reclaimed from the Atlantic Ocean for the lagoon. In effect, the whole of Victoria Island, Lekki, Lagoon shore of Lagos Island or any land reclaimed up to Ikorodu, Iddo, Apapa on to Badagry were affected. So what was left of Lagos?

    I took the Federal Government to court as a Nigerian citizen, with the backing of the then governor of Lagos State, the late Sir Michael Otedola. The case dragged on till 2000 when I got judgment. In spite of the judgment, former President  Olusegun Obasanjo re-enacted the decree in 2004, not by going to the National Assembly for a new Act. He acted under a section of the Constitution which still empowers the President or a Governor to amend an existing law. But the law (Lands Title vesting) ceased to exist in 2004 because the Federal High Court has declared it illegal and unconstitutional. Obasanjo was badly advised by his Attorney-General at the time because that Act was still in the laws of the Federation. That was the subject matter of the first and second editions of my book titled: “Contemporary State Land Matters in Nigeria: The case of Lagos State.’’

    The decision in that case effectively nullified the obnoxious Lands (Title Vesting) Decree No 52 of 1993. Anyone who claims to have any kind of title to land on the foreshore or islands must regularise his title with the Lagos State Government.

    The entire landmass of Lagos State as prescribed by all the laws establishing the state of Lagos, excluding those lands granted to the Federal Government for Federal purposes, belongs to the government and people of Lagos State.

     

    What is the focus of your new book?

     

    The book is on a different format. It discusses the Federal State Land and the State Land of the state. For example, in Lagos State, the problem is bigger here because of large volume of federal land in Lagos.

    The new edition also discusses fully other areas of dispute between the Federal Government and the State governments. For instance, the Federal Government has established land registry in Lagos supposedly to register Federal lands in Lagos and probably it is being done in other states. It has no legal basis. It has no backing in law. Land is a state matter. When we talk of land administration, we are talking of physical planning which is a state function. Federal Government should have no land registry in any region or state. Since the Federal Government was established in 1954, federal state lands in any region or state are used to be registered in land registry in the state capital.

    All I have said about land registration do not apply to the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) in Abuja. Federal Government owns the land in Abuja as it used to own the land in Lagos before the creation of Lagos State. But since the creation of Lagos State in May 1967, Titles to State Lands in Lagos was transferred to Lagos State Government. That is why the Title of a place like Ikoyi which used to be vested in the Federal Government was transferred to Lagos State Government.

    Another issue discussed in the new edition is about issue of Certificates of Occupancy (C of O) in respect of Federal State Lands in Lagos. Only state government has the power in law to issue C of O to any land owner including the Federal Government in respect of lands located in that state. But in recent years, Federal Government has been issuing C of Os in respect of land transaction concerning Federal State Lands in Lagos. There is no legal or constitutional backing for that.

    The third issue raised in the new edition is what are Federal Lands in Lagos? For example, the issue of ownership of Tafawa Balewa Square (TBS): Who owns TBS, Federal or state government? Who owns a good number of lands being claimed by the Federal Government in Lagos.

    Another issue addressed in the book is about land along navigable waterways like Lagos lagoon. For example, the Federal Government with armed police/soldiers stopped construction work on the land on Lagos lagoon behind Falomo Police Barracks. The project belongs to Lagos State Government. But the Federal Government  officials with armed soldiers stopped the project. The question is who owns the land along navigable waterways like Lagos lagoon. That problem was highlighted recently by some incident along the Lagos lagoon in Southwest Ikoyi wherein officials of National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) with armed police demanded fees from land owners along the lagoon for being within the right of way of the lagoon. These are issues raised in this new book including how much of Navigable Inland Waterways Act is legal or illegal? It also touches on political and constitutional history of Lagos from 1861. It also talks about land tenure in different states of the federation and many more issues.

    What motivated you in writing the book?

     

    One, as a Nigerian, I am trying to show in various states of the country what is state land belonging to the state government of a particular state and what is federal state land within each state of a particular state.  I have presented the distinction of going back to 1954 when the colonial government set up the federal system of government in Nigeria. The controversy assumed new proportion in Lagos State after the Gowon government defined what was federal state’s land and what was Lagos state land after discussions between the representatives of the two governments and the approval by the Supreme Military Council headed by Gen. Yakubu Gowon.

    Another motivation is that it pleased Allah that I was a Federal Commissioner for Works and Housing during Gowon’s era from 1967 to 1974 and in-charge of Federal lands throughout the country. I thought I should pass my knowledge acquired as the Minister in-charge of federal lands at the time and the knowledge acquired since I left government in 1974 to the Nigerian public all in the interest of good governance, harmony and peace among the states and the people of the country.

     

    To what extent will it benefit  the public

     

    The issues raised should interest general readers. A number of people bought lands from the Federal Government in Ikoyi and other parts of Lagos city. They have problems with Lagos State about titles. The claim to land with the right of way of inland waterways will have profound effect on all landed properties along the right of way of all navigable inland waterways in Nigeria including Rivers, Niger, Benue, Sokoto, Kaduna, Gongola, Taraba, Cross River, Forcados, Benin, Ethiope, Warri, Imo, Lagos Lagoon, Anambra and Ogun Rivers, Lake Chad and several others as defined in the Act.

  • Okunnu’s book for launch

    Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola will tomorrow present a book written by legal icon and former Federal Commissioner for Works and Housing, Alhaji Femi Okunnu in Lagos.

    According to a statement by the publisher, “Contemporary State Land Matters in Nigeria: The Case of Lagos” is the third edition.

    The ceremony will hold at the Metropolitan Club, 15, Kofo Abayomi Street, Victoria Island.

  • Okunnu commends security agents for containing terrorism

    The President, Ansar-ud-deen Society of Nigeria, Alhaji Lateef Okunnu, on Saturday commended the security agents for curtailing the activities of terrorists in the country.

    Okunnu told the New Agency of Nigeria that the efforts of the  joint task force had helped a lot in checking the heinous activities of terrorists’ particularly in the north.

    The former Federal Commissioner for Works also sympathised with state governments and victims of recent flood disasters in the country and prayed to God to protect the nation against future disasters.

    On the Eid-el-Kabir festivities, he urged Muslims worldwide to always emulate the exemplary life of Prophet Ibrahim while celebrating.

    Okunnu said they should ensure their activities were guided by the teachings of the Holy Qu’ran, adding that such were emulated by the prophets.

    “The celebration of Eid-el-Kabir this year should be with fear of Allah as a major consideration.

    “We should be reminded of the exemplary life of the father of the faithful, prophet Ibrahim, his son Ismail, and wife Sayidat Hajara, on their total submission to the will of Allah.

    “ In the course of your celebration, let your activities be strictly guided by the teachings of the Holy Qu’ran and the Hadith of the Holy Prophet Muhammad,’’ he said.

    He said the lessons from Eid-el-Kabir were sacrifice and absolute submission to the will of Allah, adding that God should be praised for “sparing our lives.’’