Press statement

WE REJECT ANY CRIME IN OUR NAME

Our attention has been drawn to what looks more like a planned operation to paint the Islamic Movement in Nigeria, IMN, black using some false, unsubstantiated claimed intelligence report that the Movement was planning to kidnap military officers to use as ransom for the release of the revered leader of the Movement, His Eminence Sheikh Ibraheem Zakzaky.

This was followed by the kidnap of an Army officer in Kaduna for which the Nigerian Army issued a statement announcing it and calling on the public to give information that would lead to the arrest of the perpetrators.

It is clear that the government and its Army are going further in their plans of campaign of calumny and false propaganda against the Movement from smear documentaries on Television networks, advertorials in daily newspapers, sponsoring fake non-governmental organizations to paint the Movement black, to engaging in organized crimes and linking it to the Movement.

We wish to state here categorically that the Islamic Movement in Nigeria under the leadership of His Eminence, Sheikh Ibraheem Zakzaky has never, is not and will never engage in any form of crime to meet any of its objectives.

The IMN is a peaceful Movement, with enlightened and responsible people as members that has for close to four decades conducted its activities in the most civilized manner and cannot in any way derail from that track record and engage in any form of crime or violence.

The Islamic Movement is aware that due to negligence of those in power who careless about the welfare of their citizens, a lot of crimes including kidnapping have become common in the country and the IMN condemns all forms of crimes and preaches against them as a religious body.

Hence, it is virtually illogical and unreasonable for anyone to presume that the IMN would engage in such acts of immorality even as its rights have been violated and its sanctity molested by the government and its Army by killing and burning its members alive, molesting and raping its women and abducting and illegally detaining it members including the leader of the Movement.

We are forced to believe that the government and its Army are desperate in wanting to not only bury their crimes against humanity, but also justify the inhumanity they meted on the innocent unarmed members of the Movement on the 12th to 14th of December 2015 where they killed over 1000.

The lack of justification for the crimes the government and its Army committed has pushed them into engaging in all forms of instigation to force the peaceful Movement into violence which the Movement has resisted despite all efforts.

It is pertinent to reiterate here that the IMN is a peaceful Movement and will sustain its campaign for justice and fairness to be meted on those that perpetrated crimes against it using peaceful means of seeking redress.

This has been displayed in the way the IMN has taken due processes in dealing with the Commission of Inquiry set up by the Kaduna state government, making public every stage in its campaign and taking its case before the International Criminal Court, ICC in Hague.

Finally, we would like to use this platform to call on the government and its Army to own up to their crimes and release the revered leader of the Movement Sheikh Ibraheem Zakzaky and other members unconditionally.

Sign

Ibrahim Musa

President

Media Forum of the Islamic Movement in Nigeria

0805 078 6390

28-03-16