Below is the full text of Sheikh Ahmad Abubakar Gumi’s communiqué after rounding up his sermon: 2013 Ramadan Tafsir at Sultan Bello Mosque Kaduna yesterday.


Alhamdulillah, today we have come to the end of this year’s Tafsir with great hope and anticipations that Allah – subhanahu Wa taala - will accept our humble devotions and grant us success in this world and the hereafter. Amin.
This great Mosque, Sultan Bello Mosque, which is named after the great Islamic leader and scholar, Muhammad Bello, the Son of Shehu Bin Fodio, was established purposely to propagate and teach Islam in its pristine form. It has today remained one of the relics that linked their past endeavor with the present and future. It also represents the epitome of the Islamic propagation efforts of Sheik Abubakar Mahmoud Gumi, which earned him the international recognition and fame in the service of Islam. This makes the mosque a stand-alone edifice that cannot be muffled, suppressed, diluted or hijacked by any political, traditional or secular formations that had worked persistently to destroy our past.


Alhamdulillah, this Ramadan has come to a near end without any significant incident of insecurity problem here. We however lament the latest attack on peaceful citizens in Kano State. There is never any justification for such an evil act under whatever pretext. May Allah continue to protect us all from this evil and expose the perpetrators of this wicked act. The nation is fast approaching a general election in the year 2015. With the ever-changing contour of the political landscape, we urge all politicians to put hands together to ensure that the spirit of the democratic governance should be the core of our mutual peaceful coexistence. Politicians should avoid personal, tribal or regional parochial interest over the interest of the whole nation. We should understand the parable of the ship-travelers described by our noble prophet – peace be upon him. A group of people were travelling in a ship, some in the upper deck while some in the lower deck. Whenever those in the lower deck wanted water, they passed over those in the upper deck thus disturbing them and wetting their place. When [the upper deck people] complained, the lower deck people took an axe trying to make a hole in their place to get water. The prophet said, “if the upper deck people allow [the lower deck travelers] to do what they intend, all of them would perish.”

Nigeria is a nation that is bleeding because of political upheavals from simple lack of transparency in elections, [from] petroleum pilfering,[from] official corruption,[from] national apathy toward hard work and excellence, [from] religious and ethnic bigotry, [from] disproportionate representation in the national institutions. Nigerians need a government that will address these issues will all sincerity. We call on the Federal Government, the National Security Council, Northern state governors to urgently withdraw the military forces from the streets and cities of the northern states. An Arab adage says: ( ُﻞِﺑِﻹﺍ ُﺩَﺭﻮُﺗ ُﺪْﻌَﺳ ﺎﻳ ﺍَﺬﻛﺎﻫ ﺎﻣ) Meaning, oh Saad, this is not the way camels are driven to a water place. It doesn’t require military and security experts to know that the military reaction to the insecurity problem the northern states went through and is still going through since the inception of this dispensation is not commensurate in kind and size to the actual problem. The military occupation of the northern states is clearly more a political message than security challenge. It has to be seriously and urgently addressed. The interest of the nation and our peaceful coexistence should supersede any envisaged personal, tribal or regional interest. The huge budget spent on this military adventure if spent in improving the police, training, gadgets and numbers, would surely have tackled the menace. The military needs to re-check itself. Recently [there was a document in circulation especially on the Internet, which portrayed lopsidedness in promotions, or even victimizations in the rank and file. Dissatisfaction of any quarter is not good for the military. Kaduna Military Hospital has remained neglected since the initiative by former [Chief of Army Staff]. Commandants of military institutions are grossly lopsided against the Muslims. We urge the state governments to exert their influence to see that each state and local government area is given [its] due quota in the intake of these institutions and other federal positions.


Poverty alleviation programs are highly needed. Unemployment has become a national scourge. ASUU strike needs to be urgently addressed. In as much as Government should be responsible in its obligations, the academics have seriously damaged the psyche of the young generation by their incessant and continued strikes over the decades, teaching [the youth] that “Man shall live by bread
alone”. This noble profession of teaching is ‘bastardized’ by irresponsibility in Nigeria. It is not then strange that the youth are given to drugs or prostitution. May Allah save our youth from moral decadence.


Public sanitation, sewage conduits and environmental cleanliness are all nationalemergencies.


We call on Muslims to live peacefully with their Christian counterparts; they are equal citizens of this nation. Islam has accorded the Christians a special position of closeness that we need to strengthen. This is what we learnt in this year’s Tafsir. This, however, does not negate the fact that, among the Christians, are those that are apparently mischievous – those who manipulate their associations and sometimes government apparatus to injure Muslims. We have found out that they are usually driven by bigotry and prejudice against anything Islamic. The best advice for Christians in this country is that they should learn that Islam is a universal religion that does not impose itself on non- adherents, and that any attempt to thwart the rights of Muslims to enjoy their constitutional rights of practicing their religion is a breach of such treaty. Muslims are urged by the Quran, especially this chapter we are reading, to fulfill all obligations and covenants. As we aspire to fulfill our obligations, Christians are also advised to do so, so that we can all live in peace and harmony. We should all continue to pray for peace and progress of this nation.


Wassalamu Alaikum.

Jazaakumllahu Akhira. Good message for Muslims to reflect on. May Allah reward the Shiek Gumi n his family. Amin