There is nothing wrong with Islamic Jihad – Aregbesola

by Kolapo Olapoju

Osun State Governor, Rauf Aregbesola, has stated that he sees nothing wrong with the practice of Islamic Jihad, which he explained to be a concept that has the aim of promoting the establishment of a personal relationship between Muslims and Allah.

Aregbesola made the comments in Ile-Ife on Thursday, 23 October, while delivering a lecture titled, “Muslims’ response to insurgency threat in Nigeria”, at the 6th annual Femi Lateef Okunnu lecture series.

“Jihad should not be turned into a license to unleash terror on people, Muslims and Christians alike and as well as to destabilise the nation. Contrary to the claims by groups such as the Boko Haram sect, Jihad is neither a call to arms nor an ideological blueprint for destructive insurgency. Jihad in Islam is at its core about establishing a personal relationship with Allah. The meaning of Jihad in Islam is a total submission to the will and obedience to the laws of Allah.”

Aregbesola also criticised the members of the Islamic terrorist sect, Boko Haram for hiding behind Jihad to justify for their violent attacks and nefarious activities, a situation which he says is caused by a misunderstanding of the concept of Jihad.

“Jihad is far from being an open cheque for senseless violence, neither is it a Qur’anic endorsement of the pursuit of selfish political desires. The concept of Jihad in Islam simply means ‘struggle’ or ‘striving.’ It has two broad dimensions – external and internal striving.”

“Submitting to Allah’s will is an act of conscious choice granted to mankind by God; obeying His laws is a demonstration and vindication of that submission. They abused notion of Jihad often used as justification for satanic atrocities of insurgent groups, such as the Boko Haram sect, is a gross misapplication of the concept.”

Aregbesola asked, “If Islam thus forbids violence against innocents, how does Boko Haram justify the senseless killings, maiming, kidnappings of innocent women, children, and girls?”

The lecture was organised by the Nigeria Association of Muslim Law Students of the Obafemi Awolowo Awolowo University, Ile Ife.

Comments (3)

  1. Probably Boko Haram people don’t know the meaning of Jihad

Leave a reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

cool good eh love2 cute confused notgood numb disgusting fail