Islamic Cleric Explains Bane of Nigerian Clergy

The National President of Islamic Education Trust (IET) of Nigeria, Shiekh Ahmed Lemu, has described greed, selfish and quest for leadership positions as the bane of many clerics in the country.
Shiekh Lemu, who stated this at the weekend, in Minna, at a two-day seminar with the theme: “Inter-faith Relations and Political Stability in Nigeria: Breaking the cycle of identity politics,” organised by Development Initiative of West Africa (DIWA) of Nigeria in collaboration with IET, said their efforts were mostly geared towards satisfying their selfish desires rather than those of the people.

He noted that “selfishness with a desire to accumulate massive wealth than we can spend, and quest for power and followers devoid of consciousness of accountability before God (Creator) are the major causes of problems bedeviling the nation – alongside insecurity, indiscipline and insurgency.”

The cleric, who was the chairman, Presidential Panel on 2011 Post-Election Violence, explained that the aim of the seminar was to provide a platform, where issues affecting peaceful co-existence in Nigeria could be discussed to promote mutual understanding amongst the believers of the two main faiths.