The Nigeria-based Muslim Rights Concern MURIC has slammed the Nigerian Bar Association NBA for dumping El-Rufai to invite Obasanjo and Wike, describing the decision as myopic.
The human rights organization which promotes, protects and projects the rights of Muslims in Nigeria gave this reaction in a statement made through its Director, Professor Ishaq Akintola.
Recall that the Bar Association withdrew the invitation it gave to Kaduna Governor El-Rufai for its forthcoming conference, following protests from some lawyers. El-Rufai was billed to be one of the speakers at the association’s Conference scheduled for August 26 – 29, 2020. However, his inclusion led to outrage and backlash, even on social media.
Reacting, MURIC’s Ishaq Akintola noted that the withdrawal is a high level prejudice and the association, as a group of learned literati should know better. He said the fact that the association took the ‘ill-advised step’ on account of a petition written by a group, Open Bar Initiative exposes association’s impatience, intolerance and self-conceit.
“NBA yesterday dropped Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, the governor of Kaduna State from the list of speakers at its Virtual AGC which is billed to start on 26th August, 2020. It is high level prejudice. The NBA as a group of learned literati should know better. It is parochial, myopic and jejune. The fact that NBA took the ill-advised step on account of a petition written by a group, Open Bar Initiative whose main fear is expressed as ‘One can be sure that he will also use the given platform to advance his conflated narrative, designed to deceive and confuse the nation on the real causes of the killings’ exposes NBA’s impatience, intolerance and self-conceit.”
“Is it not better to hear him out than to lock him out? Is it not better to jaw-jaw than to war-war? The departure of the ambassador, they say, is the beginning of war. By dropping El-Rufai, NBA has declared war on the other side in the Southern Kaduna crisis. By so doing, it lost a golden chance to be part of the solution to the conflict. The NBA has elected to be part of the problem. Was it not Jane Goodall who said, ‘Change happens by listening and then starting a dialogue with the people who are doing something you don’t believe is right’?“
“Change cannot come through rejection and exclusion. How justifiable is the NBA’s decision to exclude Governor El-Rufai from the virtual conference when people like Chief Olusegun Obasanjo of Odi and Zaki Biam fame and Governor Nyesom Wike are among the speakers? Who bulldozed the hotels of innocent people despite court orders? Who visited unspeakable violence on political opponents? Should NBA hobnob with people linked to genocide and undemocratic practices? So why demonise El-Rufai where killers of innocent people and enemies of democracy are idolised?” Read also: Dapo Abiodun Has Sold Ogun To Christians -MURIC
“MURIC calls on all lawyers from the North to boycott NBA’s AGC in protest against this open declaration of war on Northern Kaduna. Every little action of injustice must spark a reaction if tyranny is to be stopped in the world. The NBA has crossed the red line in human relations and conflict management. No single lawyer from the North should participate in the AGC either as a resource person or as a participant unless the NBA rescinds its decision to drop El-Rufai from the list of speakers. Injury to one is injury to all”, the statement reads.
