Tinubu urges Nigerians to preserve national unity, embrace dialogue

President Bola Tinubu has called on Nigerians to preserve the unity of the country despite their differences, stressing that dialogue remains essential to keeping Nigeria united.

Tinubu, represented by the Deputy President of the Senate, Barau Jibrin, made the call on Tuesday at the International Conference on Security and National Unity organised by Jama’atu Izalatil Bid’ah Wa Iqamatus Sunnah (JIBWIS) in collaboration with the Muslim World League.

The President said his administration remained committed to addressing the country’s security challenges and promoting peace through collaboration with other nations.

> “The government is determined to make sure that we remain united as a country, despite our differences, whatever the differences may be. We should talk and remain in this country, and allow this country to remain a united nation, a united country,” he said.

Tinubu described the conference as timely, given the security challenges confronting Nigeria and other parts of the world, adding that its deliberations could contribute to efforts to achieve sustainable regional, continental and global peace.

He also commended the Muslim World League for partnering with JIBWIS and choosing Nigeria as the first country to host the conference.

APC Chairman Warns Against Religious, Ethnic Politics

The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Prof. Nentawe Yilwatda, warned political leaders against exploiting religion and ethnicity for political advantage.

Yilwatda said Nigeria’s diversity should be a source of strength rather than division, stressing that religious and ethnic differences should not undermine the shared humanity and common destiny of Nigerians.

Recalling his experience as a displaced person during the Bauchi crisis, he said violence did not discriminate between Christians and Muslims.

> “When violence comes, it does not ask whether you are a Christian or a Muslim before it destroys either your home, or your humanity, or your dignity,” he said.

He urged politicians to resist the temptation to weaponise religion and ethnicity, warning that temporary political gains could cause permanent damage to the country.

> “No political victory is worth the permanent damage inflicted on our nation, and we’ve been seeing it every day,” Yilwatda said.

He also urged religious leaders to make mosques and churches centres of peace, reconciliation and responsible citizenship.

> “Let our mosques and our churches become centres of peace, of reconciliation, and responsible citizenship,” he said.

Yilwatda called on religious leaders to preach faith without hatred and conviction without contempt, while urging traditional rulers to strengthen dialogue and reconciliation.

He further called for a collective rejection of hate speech, regardless of whether it comes from religious platforms, traditional institutions, political gatherings or social media.

NIREC Calls for Rejection of Religious Division

The Nigeria Inter-Religious Council (NIREC) also urged Nigerians to reject attempts to weaponise religion, ethnicity and poverty to create division.

The Executive Secretary of NIREC, Prof Cornelius Omonokhua, said Christians and Muslims should promote mercy, compassion, love and respect for human dignity.

> “No one is created a Christian, and no one is created a Muslim. We are created as human beings; hence what binds us together is humanity,” Omonokhua said.

He warned against using religion to justify violence, noting that both Christianity and Islam uphold the sanctity of human life.

Sultan Calls for End to Religious Insults

The Sultan of Sokoto and Co-Chairman of NIREC, Muhammadu Sa’ad Abubakar III, called for greater implementation of resolutions reached at conferences, saying Nigeria does not lack solutions to its problems.

> “We don’t lack solutions to our problems. What we lack is implementation. How to implement whatever we agree to do,” the Sultan said.

He also urged Christians and Muslims to stop insulting one another.

> “Christians should stop insulting Muslims. Muslims should stop insulting Christians, and that’s how we live in peace,” he said.

Al-Issa Attends Conference

The conference was attended by the Secretary-General of the Muslim World League, Sheikh Mohammad Al-Issa, who witnessed the signing of the Abuja Declaration.

The declaration seeks to establish a new alliance between Muslim and Christian leaders and create a peace-building mechanism aimed at preventing religious tensions from escalating into violence in Nigeria and West Africa.

The conference was also attended by federal ministers, governors, religious leaders, traditional rulers and other dignitaries.