By George Coben, Bauchi
The Director of information, Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University(ATBU), Bauchi, Zailani Bappah, has said that a piece of land allocated to the institution’s chapter of the Tijjaniyya Muslim Association of Nigeria(TIMSAN), at its Gubi campus,led to the resignation of the chief Imam of its mosque, Professor Mansur Isa Yelwa, along with his deputy, last week Friday.
Zailani Bappah, who spoke on behalf of the instruction’s management Wednesday, in a press briefing, at the NUJ secretariat, Bauchi, stated that TIMSAN was allocated the land for the purpose of building a mosque for their religious rites because the Shura committee disallowed the association from conducting their sect’s religious activities in the university mosque.
“This singular decision of resignation as the chief Imam and its public pronouncement on the pulpit of the mosque during Friday prayer went viral across local, national and international boundaries,” he stated.
He further stated that this generated serious uproar and significant security concerns beyond the ATBU community to other universities and tertiary institutions across the country, with visible actions that transcend the influence of the ATBU boundaries.
Bappah said a stakeholders meeting was therefore summoned by the Department of State Services, DSS, in Bauchi, on Tuesday for a peaceful resolution of the issues at stake.
“In attendance at the meeting were representatives of the university management, the Shura Council of the university, the Muslim Students Society of Nigeria(MSSN), ATBU Chapter, and that of the Tijjaniyya Muslim Association of Nigeria (TIMSAN), ATBU Chapter,” he explained.
The Director said the meeting resolved that all Islamic sects in ATBU should henceforth be allowed to conduct their religious activities at specified times within the university mosque, adding that consequently, the land allocated to TIMSAN at Gubi campus should be withdrawn.
It was also resolved that both the Shura Council and the MSSN leaderships should be restructured to accommodate all existing muslim sects in the university.
While saying that the meeting resolved that the university should henceforth take responsibility for the appointment of the chief Imam and his deputies for the university, Bappah stated that it was additionally resolved that the university should ensure that its extant rules and regulations govern all religious activities within the campus.
He commended the DSS office in Bauchi for timely intervention and assured of judicious supervision for the implementation of the resolutions to maintain peace and tranquility on the university campuses.
