By Omololu Ogunmade
President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday in Abuja, urged religious leaders in the country to assist government to overcome forces of destruction by enlightening their followers to guard against religious extremism and terrorism.
The president, according to presidential spokesman, Malam Garba Shehu, made the appeal while receiving the leadership of Qadiriyya Islamic Movement in Africa in the State House.
According to the statement, the president noted that Muslim leaders had a duty to promote the principles and tenets of Islam as a religion of peace and justice.
The statement also said the president observed that those who indoctrinate children and plant explosives on them to harm innocent people do not belong to any religion but are “terrorists who should be identified and fought until they give up their evil ways.’’
Furthermore, the statement said the president who commended the Qadiriyya movement for promoting education, interfaith dialogue and good moral conduct in the society, expressed support for the proposed Islamic Centre in Abuja by the movement.
It added that earlier in his remarks, the leader of the Qadiriyya in Africa, Sheikh Qaribullah Kabara, congratulated the president on his emergence as his party’s candidate for the 2019 presidential election.
It also said Kabara commended the president on the achievements of his administration since 2015, listing such achievements to include: diversification of the economy, increased power supply and food sufficiency
