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Vice President Kashim Shettima has emphasised to the Sokoto State government the unique and crucial role of His Eminence, Alhaji Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar III, and the importance of closely protecting him.
Shettima made this statement during the ongoing North West Peace & Security Summit in Katsina State.
“In all developmental issues in this country, His Eminence, the Sultan of Sokoto, I want to use him as a point of reference to recognise and appreciate all our royal fathers present here.”
“And to the deputy governor of Sokoto, I have a simple message for you, Yes, the Sultan is the Sultan of Sokoto, but he is much more than that; he represents an idea, he is an Institution, that all of us in this country need to jealousy guard, protect, promote, preserve and project for the growth of our nation,” Shettima said as quoted by Daily Trust.
Alleged plot to unseat Sultan of Sokoto
Shettima’s remarks come in the wake of a stark warning from the Executive Director of the Muslim Rights Council (MURIC), Professor Ishaq Akintola, about an alleged and concerning plan by the Sokoto government to remove the Sultan from his position.
Governor Ahmed Aliyu had previously dismissed 15 traditional rulers for various reasons.
Akintola emphasised that Nigerian Muslims would strongly oppose any attempt to depose the Sultan.
“Feelers in circulation indicate that the governor may descend on the Sultan of Sokoto any moment from now using any of the flimsy excuses used to dethrone the 15 traditional rulers whom he removed earlier.
“MURIC advises the governor to look before he leaps. The Sultan’s stool is not only traditional. It is also religious. In the same vein, his jurisdiction goes beyond Sokoto. It covers the whole of Nigeria. He is the spiritual head of all Nigerian Muslims.
“Therefore, any governor who tampers with the stool of the Sultan will have Nigerian Muslims to reckon with because the Sultan combines the office of the Sultan of Sokoto and that of the President General of the NSCIA,” Akintola said.