The Alara-in-Council, foremost traditional authority in Aramoko Ekiti, Ekiti West Local Government, has taken a swipe at the Muslim Right Concern (MURIC) headed by its Executive Director, Prof. Ishaq Akintola over a claim that mosques were demolished to give way for a township market.
The market, known as New Oja Oba Market, is one of the constituency projects of Leader of the Senate and Senator representing Ekiti Central in the National Assembly, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele.
In a statement by the Sajowa of Aramoko Ekiti and Chairman of Alara Modern Market Reconstruction, Chief Kola Oyebade on Tuesday, the council described MURIC’s allegation as misleading, baseless and a deliberate attempt to tarnish the image of the senator.
The council said there was “never a mosque or any known worship center within the radius of the parcel of land where the New Oja Oba Market was built in the Sabo area of our community.
“The smear campaign is orchestrated by the leadership of the Islamic group against the person of the senate leader. Aramoko Ekiti is an integral part of Ekiti Central. It is unfortunate this campaign is spearheaded by a supposed university professor, who is expected to promote peace and not bigotry.”
The council said all sons and daughters of Aramoko Ekiti strongly condemned MURIC’s attempt at misleading the public and creating unwarranted hate against the senator, a benefactor of the community
As contained in the statement, the council challenged anyone with a proof of existing mosques in the current location of the market to immediately come forward to establish his claim or consider themselves as agents of disharmony.
The council further noted: “To put the records straight; all religious, traditional and constituted authorities in Aramoko Ekiti were duly consulted in the process that led to the construction of the 100-shop market.
“Several meetings were convened by our committee taking inputs and documenting commendable attendance from them not only in Aramoko community across the entire Ekiti West Local Government Area.
“At no time did anyone raise concern or submit petitions before the committee that they were previously using the said property as a worship center or for any purpose whatsoever.
“Under the leadership of our highly respected monarch, Oba Adegoke Olu Adeyemi, also a devout Muslim, Aramoko has enjoyed a peaceful coexistence. We will not fold our arms and allow any agent of confusion to cause issues among the descendants of Aramoko Ekiti.”
Oyebade noted that members of both faiths are currently occupying shops and going about their normal businesses peacefully to the disappointment of what MURIC expected would lead to an ethno-religious lawlessness.
While taking further swipe at Akintola’s MURIC, the council said it was not surprised going by its antecedents of crying foul where there is none in a desperate attempt to fan ember of disunity.
It went memory lane when he mentioned another recent attempt by MURIC to set Muslims in Ekiti against the state government over the Sharia Arbitration Panel and a similar case in Oyo State few days into the year.
The council however advised that “Instead of unrepentantly fanning embers of discord and religious conflagration, MURIC and its promoters should begin to toe the path of honour by embracing tolerance, living with people of different religious backgrounds.
“MURIC is hereby reminded that the world has moved away from its current ignoble location where a group of idle minds will continuously weaponise religion to stagnate infrastructure development, especially in a secular and young state like Ekiti State.”
It revealed that Aramoko’s stakeholders would continue to support the Alara-in-Council and the state government to ensure peaceful coexistence among all indigenes and residents.
It therefore apologised to the senate leader for whatever needless damage MURIC’s deliberate act of fake news and misinformation may have caused him and thousands of his political followers.