Dr Idris Oni, an educationist at Crescent University, Abeokuta, has cautioned northern Muslims against exhibiting aggression towards issues concerning Islam in Nigeria.
Dr Oni was reacting to the outrage from northern Muslims that greeted a video Davido shared on his Twitter page.
Logos Olori, Davido’s signee and a Muslim, released the song “Jaye Ola,” which the pop star promoted on social media.
His action was greeted with outrage by some northern Muslims, with most of them asking Davido to take it down.
Dr Oni noted that the language and threats employed by some of the complainants were wrong.
He asked them to express their grievances without giving the impression that they were the real custodians of Islamic knowledge.
His words:
“Islam is not an ethnic or regional religion. It’s a religion of the whole universe. The immediate response to disrespect is not burning, killing and violence. That is not Islam. If we respond to every abuse with violence, we would be portraying Islam in a bad light. That’s wrong.
“The Davido video is not the first, and as long as the Nigerian law allows such unfettered and unchecked freedom of expression, it’s not going to be the last. The persons seen in the video wearing white and dancing must have been contracted to do it. For them, it’s a trade.
“There is nothing to prove that they are Muslims or even Yoruba. As bad as the video appears, the responses coming from the North insulting the Yoruba and disrespecting our Muslims is nothing short of tribalism, one of the worst Kabāir in Islam, worse than the evil of the video.
“Muslims must do better. When things like that come up, the right thing for us is to communicate in the most respectful manner amongst ourselves, use the courts to seek justice and stop calling for violence, pointing fingers and falling into the sin of tribalism.
“Burning, fighting, killing in the name of Islam without justice is barbaric as against Islam. Islam neither sanctions nor supports that. Islam does not permit us to take laws into our own hands. Those who support mob actions or join them to kill or destroy are all criminals.
“As Muslims, the best way to honour our faith and our beloved Rasūl SAW is to represent your faith properly and represent the Rasūl SAW in the most beautiful ways. He was neither violent nor impatient. He warned us very sternly against the dangers of tribalism and injustice.”
He stated that Islam has reputable institutions across the country that can address issues of disrespect to the religion.
He also mentioned approaching the courts to seek justice for Islam when such issues occur, noting that adherents of the religion should be able to trust their leaders to address them adequately.
