The leadership of the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs, NSCIA, has summoned an emergency “expanded general purpose meeting ” over last week’s massacre of members of the Islamic Movement in Nigeria.
The NSCIA is the highest Islamic body in Nigeria, under the leadership of the Sultan of Sokoto, Saad Abubakar.
A source at the NSCIA told our team that about 200 top Muslim leaders were invited for the meeting called to review the massacre.
The invitees have already started arriving Abuja, this newspaper learnt.
“The meeting will hold at 4pm today at the National Mosque,” the source said.
Another source said those attending Wednesday’s meeting include all elected officials of the NSCIA as well as all past leaders of the body.
“Others are leaders of all Islamic organisations in Nigeria, top Muslim leaders, clerics, scholars and traditional rulers,” our source said.
He also said all former governors, ministers, Inspectors General of Police, all former Chiefs of Army Staff, Chiefs of Air Staff, Chiefs of Naval Staff and Chiefs of Defence Staff who are Muslims have also been invited for the meeting.
“Those serving in the present administration are however, excluded,” he said.
A top official of the NSCIA, who declined to be named because he was not authorised to disclose the meeting to the media, said the NSCIA called the meeting because it was “shocked by the silence of both the government and the human rights community over the massacre”.
“Where is our humanity, how can a people be so massacred and we all remain silent as if it is normal,” he said. “Today it is the Shiite, tomorrow, it could be me or you,” he said.
Efforts to reach the Secretary General of the NSCIA, Is-haq Oloyode, were unsuccessful. Those close to him said he was on his way to Abuja from his Ilorin base.
