ISLAMIC body Muslim Rights Concern (Muric) has accused Governor Dapo Abiodun of selling Ogun State to Christians by refusing to appoint Muslims to key positions in the newly constituted boards of parastatals and commissions.
On July 23, Governor Abiodun appointed members of the boards of all of Ogun State’s commissions and according to Muric, the exercise was skewed towards Christians. Muric director Professor Ishaq Akintola, said the appointments do not reflect the religious diversity in Ogun State and are a breach of Nigeria’s constitution.
He added: “The recent appointments into commissions and boards in Ogun State leave a sour taste in the mouth. The state governor, Dapo Abiodun, simply took Muslims living under him to the cleaners as an analysis of the appointments confirms our worst fears about most Christian rulers in the South West, who are there to persecute Muslims and give total political and economic power to Christians and impoverish the Muslims.
“How else can we describe Dapo Abiodun’s appointments of Thursday July, 23? How can Dapo Abiodun explain an all-Christian membership of the state’s Civil Service Commission, Teaching Service Commission and the Agro Services Corporation? The governor has simply renamed those commissions Christian Services Commission although he is yet to officially announce it.
“He gave Muslims 40% of the membership of the state’s Housing Corporation, 33.3% in the Health Management Board and 40% in the Bulk Purchasing Board. It is only in the Local Government Commission that Muslims have 60% but in all, Muslims have just 11 out of a total of 43 appointments.
“Further analysis and deeper screening reveals the governor’s real agenda of selling the state to Christians. He plans to use the 100% Christian membership of the Civil Service Commission to ensure that all future employment into the civil service is for Christian applicants only.”
Professor Akintola added: “Also, no single Muslim was appointed into the Teaching Service for two main reasons. Firstly, in order to employ Christians only as teachers into Ogun State public schools and secondly, to perpetuate the age-long persecution of Muslim students and bring them under undue influence of Christian teachers cum evangelists.
“This will facilitate the forceful conversion of Muslim students to Christianity. It is equally noteworthy that both special advisers to the governor on primary/secondary education and tertiary education are Christians.
“Governor Dapo Abiodun of Ogun State has been grossly unfair to Muslims under him. He has robbed Muslims of the state of the dividends of democracy, in a state where Muslims are the majority.
“This is the mentality of the average Yoruba Christian in power yet we claim there is religious tolerance in Yorubaland. From Ekiti to Ondo, Oyo and now Ogun, their mentality is the same.
“Oduduwa Republic will be hell on earth for Yoruba Muslims if it ever materialises. Even without the phantom Oduduwa Republic, Muslims are being tossed around, persecuted, oppressed and marginalised as they scatter us like wild oats and Afenifere sees nothing wrong with the denial of Allah-given fundamental human rights of Muslims in Oduduwaland.”
