Tension as Christian PDP Governor Rebuilt Mosque, Renamed It After Himself, Muslims Kick

• MURIC has kicked against the move by the Oyo state government to rename a rebuilt Mosque after Governor Seyi Makinde, who is a Christian
• The executive director of MURIC, Ishaq Akintola, demanded the immediate reversal of the old name of the Mosque
• Makinde is the candidate of the PDP in the Saturday, March 18 governorship election, seeking his second-term ambition

IN Ibadan, Oyo – The decision of the Oyo state government to rename the newly rebuilt popular central Mosque in the Iwo Road area of Ibadan after Governor Seyi Makinde has met stiff criticism from the Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC).

According to Premium Times, the Islamic group is demanding that the old name of the mosque should be immediately reversed.

MURIC kicks as Oyo state government named Mosque after Makinde Photo Credit: Seyi Makinde Source: Twitter

Details of the mosque name after Makinde in Oyo state

Ishaq Akintola, the MURIC executive director, made this known in a statement on Saturday, March 11.

In October 2019, Seyi Makinde said that the mosque would be demolished because of the construction of a bus terminal.

According to the governor, the project was expected to be completed between 9 and 11 months.

Governor Makinde added that a church around the terminal area would also be affected.

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MURIC accused the governor, who was the flagbearer of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the forthcoming governorship election, of trying to score cheap political gain with the religious edifice being named after him at a time he was seeking re-election for his second-term ambition.

The group alleged that the timing of the mosque completion was well calculated, and the governor had used the praying centre to play on the intelligence of the Oyo state Muslim community.

While describing the government action as a desecration of the worship place, the group said:

“We are shocked to our marrows. What audacity! It is desecration of our place of worship. We cannot worship Makinde. We will worship Allah alone. It would have been right if he had not destroyed our mosque ab initio. But now we can still ask him ‘Where is our mosque?’ It is highly immoral. His action also lacks tact.”