Niger State Governor Mohammed Umaru Bago has pleaded with locals to have greater patience and understanding with the current state and federal governments.
The governor made the call while he was congratulating the Niger State Imams Forum, which was led by its chairman and the chief imam of Minna Central Mosque, Imam Isah Fari.
Bago claimed that although the government is aware of the hardships people are going through, it is working toward a better future for both the nation and its people.
The governor gave the Imams forum members instructions to always advocate for religious tolerance and peaceful coexistence in their sermons.
“We urged them to continue pursuing the government. There are many changes taking place, therefore we need their help in encouraging unity and perseverance in their sermons. We also ask them to pray for the state and the nation so that we might return to the path of prosperity.
Faith is not something you say. It implies that you should respect other faiths as well. “Once you respect other people’s faiths and realize that everyone has their own methods of connecting with their God, we will live in harmony, the governor said.
He also gave them the responsibility of helping to educate the public about the need to refrain from careless waste disposal in order to maintain a clean and safe environment.
Bago also urged the Forum to support the administration’s policy priorities and charged them with continuing to pray for strong leaders and a safe society.
He argued that, as opposed to the National Hajj Commission’s centralized plan, each state should be free to make its own accommodations for incoming pilgrims.
The governor reaffirmed that the state government would build a more suitable hajj camp and a stronger welfare system.
The Governor instructed all of his appointees to always return to their communities to attend Friday prayer in order to meet with them and feel their impulses while assuring the populace of his administration’s intention to offer good government.
Imam Umar Faruk Abdullahi, the Chief Imam of Bosso Estate, who addressed on behalf of the Forum, said that the purpose of their visit was to congratulate the governor on taking office as the state’s governor.
According to Abdullahi, all Muslim sects are represented in the Forum, which was established 18 years ago. Its members are chosen from the Chief Imams of the Central Mosques in all 25 local governments and 8 emirates in the state.
He claimed that the forum’s major goal is to bring the Imams together as the guardians of Islam in order to prevent discrimination.
Abdullahi counseled the governor to constantly be grateful to God for the opportunity to serve, to seek God’s guidance in his leadership, and to act with kindness, justice, and fairness toward everyone.
The Imam expressed his gratitude to the state government for all of the assistance it has provided to the Forum thus far and promised that the Forum will continue to pray for the success of the current administration and a resolution to all of the state’s security issues.
