The Islamic Movement In Nigeria (IMN), also known as Shiites, has accused the Federal Government of deploying the military to unleash religious war on Nigerians.
Besides, the group alleged yesterday in Kaduna that a contingent of soldiers, in five vehicles, demolished its worship centre and arrested two persons in Jos, Plateau State, who were undergoing spiritual training.
The Shiites, however, explained that “unfortunately to date, the arrested persons have not been charged of any offence and have not been released to their families. The victims are Idris Muhammad and Awwal Husain.”
In a statement, the IMN spokesman, Mallam Ibrahim Musa, noted: “The fact that members of the Islamic movement were just conducting a religious obligation in a centre they legally owned when they were pounced upon by the Army is enough pointer to the force’s complicity in executing a religious vendetta by some unscrupulous people.
“We condemn this disheartening attitude of the Army in the strongest terms. That was how they were used in 2016 when the centre was burnt and vandalised in collaboration with some vagabonds belonging to a religious organisation.
“We will like to remind the military authorities that the military special task force in Jos that the Nigerian Army said is supposedly non-partisan when it comes to religious affairs, has no business, whatsoever, in handling any religious disputes.”
He continued: “If at all there is any. And in this particular case, it is not even a dispute, but a case of some Nigerians discharging their religious duties peacefully at their legally owned centre when soldiers were sent to intimidate and harass them.”
Musa added: “We hereby call on the relevant authorities for the immediate release of the duo so that they can be reunited with their families because they have wronged nobody. It is equally important to suggest that to avert a reoccurrence of such misinformed blunder, whenever some disgruntled elements of the public gave them a false alarm against the Islamic movement, they should first investigate and report the matter to the police, since it is a civil matter. “ He noted that “their presence in our gatherings is unwanted, uncalled for and utterly shameful to their status.”
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