By: Kamoru Sodiq, Osun
“… And if Allah did not check one set of people by the means of another, the earth would indeed be full of mischief. But Allah is full of Bounty to the Alamin (whole world).” -Quran 2: 251
Fellow Brethren, let me say categorically and with all emphasis at my command that we are now in a perilous time. Happenings around are acidic, reports are malicious and opinions are poisonous. Islamic polity especially here in the western part is dilly-dallying and suffocating! The emergence of the so-called Laajamah sect in the region is epidemic. The region that once prides itself as one the most peaceful, cultured and accommodating is now a battleground where verbal rockets and missiles compete. They stung the clime and everything was no longer at ease. The religious and moral values fell apart. Most importantly, they came and turned our wonderland into tangy. No thanks to them all!
Only Allah knows who vomited those people to pollute our ecology. To them, they believe nothing is correct and sunnatic except what they subscribe to. Nobody is practising pure Islam unless those that lick their arguments hook, line and sinker. Every Islamic platforms is an innovation and heresy save their platform. They are the only saints in the wilderness of life. It is not a rocket-science, anybody or group that says, we will fix this, will fix nothing. We are only this, are not anything.
I challenge anyone to point out one new thing they have brought to turn around Islamic dawah or better the life of dying Muslims in the street. Tell me where you see them taking dawah to the remote villages or doorsteps of the downtrodden Muslims in the society? Their target meal is the practising Muslims and the vibrant scholars. And they are armed to teeth to see them falling and failing. They declared their hard-earned impacts as wasteful. Such is the inhumanity of man against his fellow man. But for those that believe in Allah, His ways is not that of man.
I dare to say that since those guys have attacked and bruised Islamic legends like Sheikh Adam Al-Ilory, Sheikh Kamaldeen Al-Adabi both from Ilorin, Sheikh Abdul-Baaqi Muhammad of Iwo, all of blessed memory. As if it was not bad enough, they marked scholars like Sheikh Dhikrullahi Shaafi’ in Lagos, Doctor Abdur-Razaq Abdul-Mojeed Alaro in Ilorin, Doctor Sirajudeen Bin Bilal Al-Asrau in Iwo, Sheikh Isa Akindele in Ibadan and many others, for humiliation even demolition. I noted inside me that, those people are going nowhere. And to say their system of dawah can never fly is not in anyway wishing them evil. No one should be under any delusions or raise his nose in derision, how can slanderousness and attacking personalities move the world forward? on what ground will it be nice for unculturedness to impact our life?
Once they have started their holier-than-thou project and declared every Islamic organizations as associating partners with Allah and even a green card to hell, it was obvious they will soon have their hands full. And sooner than imagined, the chicken will soon come home to roost. It does not require a degree or PhD in sharia to know that they represent only their personal conviction and not Islamic comprehensiveness.
Before we could say Jack Robinson, Abu Ibeji has landed in prison and Aliy Jabata has simply vamoosed into his bunker. Even, those we expected them to fight and throw their weights around accepted it with unsual equanimity. In fact, it is true that the only thing with the rule of karma is that it grounds very slow but it grinds really smooth.
Not that some of the things they are saying are not right but the planning and methodology should have been meticulously and plausibly weighed and analysed before launching into the requisite offensive. There was a lot to learn from our unfavorable society in terms of religion. They should have deployed the carrot and stick method rather than the kill and go style that has now exposed our religion and values to grave danger and imminent collapse. Instead to retrace their step but no, that has not been the case, they kept fiddling from every corners.
But it should be noted that, those who feel unconcerned about a developing system can never be bothered if the entire structure collapses. It is such acute disillusionment that gave rise to the ascendancy of Jabata in Ilorin and Abu Ibeji in Ibadan. This is why it is the duty and responsibility of various religious leaders to wear their thinking cap well and rise above the giddiness of the detractors who have nothing to lose and only wish to see the Ummah suffering without any degree of compassion for the impoverished Muslims that they claim to represent.
Although, the Laajamah apologists want us believe that they are the best of things to happen to us and that they have come to revamp and reset our lifes on the path of the righteous predecessors. All said and heard, we will not contest that with them, but, beauty they say is in the eyes of the beholder. We know those who are making Islam and those who are breaking Islam. We do not need any Saudi junkers or dogmatic Laajamah to tell us prophet Muhammad is a messenger of Allah! Do we?
Unthinkable it may seem, this is what they are all about. They can burn down a village to catch a rat. They don’t care if the whole world perish while they are busy ‘dancing’ palongo in their “Halqo” (learning circle), in Ilorin, Ibadan or Ede. You may well want to ask who are these people? For those who take time to ask, they are the givers of hell-tidings, they are the foremost distributors of kufr (disbelieving), they are the largest marketers of Bidia’ (innovations). They give out the hell admission letters as if they posses the call roll of jahannam (hellfire). Above all, they are the so-called laajamah sect.
We must always allow reason to prevail over emotion. It is an open secret to say that, Alfa Rasheed Mustapha notoriously known as ‘Abu ibeji’ ably represented the ideology of laajamah. But his own case was a sorry case. However, following the brouhaha and high-dramas that characterized his evolution in the public domain from God-knows-where some few years ago, I have carefully watched and keenly listened to his arguments. I was pertubed and wondered aloud what this man will spell for our society. Good or worse? The ball is in your cord. But I know it was for a purpose and it is the one that we shall realize in the fullness of time. I love every Muslims and it never bothers me if anyone loves me in return or not. We can never grow or walk over our ugly past if we allow our ideological conviction to separate us apart. I grew up in the religious township of Iwo learning about the strength in unity and diversity.
But jetting out of Iwo, I was greatly exposed and discovered that our people especially the self-styled salafist are very self-opinionated mammals. They want things in their own personal ways. Any other way is no way. That is why they use hotcake like the sunnah and the righteous predecessors to cause mayhem in our clime when the real reason for their action is personal and calculated. But anything is believable in this season of anomie. So, don’t be surprised some are goading them on. Back to Abu ibeji, his genesis from wherever was a different pandemonium. Put a gun to his throat, he would still gasp like a stricken chicken but muster enough stamina to spit out whatever he had in mind to say. He is one of the biggest challenge we face today. His philosophy crept into the region like a thief in the night and hit the people at their jugulars. This is why elders in the faith should roll up their sleeves and attack the ailment from every fronts.
Not too long ago, the Laajamah movement was defecated into our community, beating their chest and daring anybody to challenge them in the race of arrogancy. However, it is somehow difficult to decipher what went awry between them but one thing led to another and the falcon can no longer hear the falconer. All we know is that, they started setting fire on their roof and the man who invested the pencil could no longer manufacture the eraser, that was the genesis of Jabata and Abu ibeji. Before we could say Shekau, Abu ibeji had become a one man squad riot. He raved and floored most sheikhs and scholars available in and outside Ibadan. He even gave himself a landmark credit for it.
However, the last straw that broke his back and led to his imprisonment was his acidic and acerbic criticism even death threat he launched against one of the most waving star of Islam and unarguably, the first Nigerian to bag PhD in Islamic law (sharia) from the International university of Medinah, Doctor, Sheikh Sirajudeen Bin Bilal Al-Asrau’. An active member of the organization of Muslim World League in Saudi Arabia.
Throughout the trials and tribulations, I have maintained a dignified silence and tried very hard to stay out of the arena for many reasons, the least was that, I knew I had to tread gingerly in other not to ignite the trouble of our divisive and acrimonious community. I was almost burst out but latter swallowed it. Anyway the dream never materialized, I shrugged my shoulders and assumed it was a goodbye to a talk of town story. But not too long ago, I was sitting pensively at home when the news of Abu Ibeji’s imprisonment exploded like a bomb. WhatsApp groups, Facebook, chat-corners and social media instantly caught fire. We were regaled of how he was tried and convicted at a magistrate court in Iwo. My interest to write about the conundrum by all means was re-ignited again and I believed the world deserves to hear from me for good and for better.
Infact, during his trial stage, there was a narration that before they could satisfy the horrendous process of securing his release and got back to him, they claimed the Abu ibeji they met was not the ebullient and beard face man they left. You wonder what happened? His head and face had become a Sahara desert almost totally bald and shaved, looking gaunt and worn-out. No doubt, he has done himself a great disservice. And as notorious as he is, he boasted himself as a scholar and a follower of the salaf. Is he right or wrong? The answer is neither here nor there. Say what you will, Abu Ibeji is an ocean of shame to Islam, and for those who have been following his Dawah’s trajectory will attest to the fact that he deserves some laurels. One of such is what was just confered on him recently at the court of law. He is now to be addressed as a jailer, an ex-convict and peace-breacher. History will record this shame for him as unprecedented to try a preacher.
What need at this material time is the spirit of Salahudeen Al-Ayubi; the Great, who led an historic revolution and the method of Umar Bin Abdul-Azeez, who brought back the golden era of the guided khalifas in his time. We need youths who are visionary, voluble and tactful but not a rambunctious and ignoramus Abu Ibeji. Our own reformer must know when to strike and when to retreat. He must set his target and follow it expeditiously.
Any movement devoids of youths cannot last likewise any movement devoids of elders cannot stand. It is as simple as that. My humble submission is that Laajamah movement has done more evil than enough. They have broken us apart, corrupted our values and the worst is not over. They are threat to our togetherness and conscience. Given everything we know about them and everything we don’t know. We all know what salafiyyah movement represents. It does not matter what they say today or what they do tomorrow. Their dawah and behavior speaks volumes of who they are. We should be horrified because it is horrifying. And anything that makes them more powerful makes them more dangerous.
For me, if Laajamah movement is mission impossible, then, let start working on how to assemble a new team and attract our best materials irrespective of where they belongs to. It can be done and it should be done. May Allah Almighty forgive Alfa Rasheed Mustapha, Abu ibeji, guide him to the path of restoration and redeem his ways. I cannot but extend a legendary equity and standing ovation to our revered father, Sheikh and Doctor Sirajudeen Bin Bilal Al-Asrau’, a dodged reformer and a scholar per excellence.
His dodgedness is mighty enough to move mountains. You ask why? Just imagine, Doctor did not sheath his sword and tow the path of peace and legality, innocent lives would have been killed for the sake of religious gladiators. May Allah preserve and protect his life for this Ummah and bless every Muslims across globe. This victory is for all and it is the beginning of many to come. According to a Yoruba adage: ” if the Gods cannot make our lives better, then they should please leave us the way they met us.”
The Muslim youths should not go the way of Abu Ibeji…
Kamoru Sodiq, Osun wrote via kamorusideeq@gmail.com
