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This Programme Strangulates  Friday Prayer” — MURIC Slams Olubadan Coronation Schedule

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The coronation planning committee for the installation of the new Olubadan of Ibadan has unveiled a week-long programme of events to mark the ascension of former Oyo State Governor, Rasheed Adewolu Ladoja, as the new monarch. However, the Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) has strongly criticized the schedule, alleging that it disregards the religious sensitivities of the Muslim community. “This programme strangulates the Muslim Friday prayer,” said Professor Ishaq Akintola, Executive Director of MURIC, in a statement issued to the press.

According to MURIC, the coronation programme begins on Monday, 22nd September 2025, with an inter-religious prayer session, followed by a cultural fiesta, a coronation lecture, and separate Islamic and Christian prayer events on subsequent days. “The first four days are in order,” Akintola noted, “but the Friday schedule is provocative and insensitive.” He emphasized that the main coronation event is slated for Friday, 26th September at 9 a.m., a time that overlaps with the Muslim Jumu’ah prayer.

MURIC expressed concern that no mention was made of any mosque-based activity or Jumu’ah prayer in the programme, while a Christian Thanksgiving Service scheduled for Sunday, 28th September at the Catholic Cathedral, Oke Padre, was prominently featured. “This is an attempt to Christianise the coronation ceremony,” Akintola alleged, adding that the omission of Friday prayers sends a troubling message to Muslim attendees.

The group further criticized the scheduling of a reception at 1 p.m. on the same Friday, a time traditionally reserved for Jumu’ah prayers. “Who does not know that Muslims are expected to be in the mosque by 1 p.m. on Fridays?” Akintola asked. He described the timing as a “punch below the belt” and called for an urgent review of the programme to accommodate Muslim worship.

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MURIC urged the planning committee to demonstrate religious inclusivity by introducing a “Thanksgiving Jumu’ah Service” at 1 p.m. on Friday and shifting the reception to 3 p.m. Alternatively, the group proposed moving the coronation ceremony itself to Saturday, 27th September, which is currently free of any scheduled events. “Saturday is the best day for the coronation ceremony per se,” Akintola advised, “as it would relieve the planners of any form of pressure while avoiding a clash with Friday prayers.”

The organization also referenced past incidents involving Governor Seyi Makinde, accusing him of a pattern of scheduling official events during Friday prayer hours. “At the road commissioning in Iseyin on 15th September 2023, the governor arrived late, making Muslim guests uncomfortable,” Akintola recalled. He also cited the coronation of the late Olubadan, Oba Owolabi Olakulehin, on Friday, 12th July 2024, where Muslim attendees reportedly missed prayers due to Makinde’s delayed arrival.

MURIC had previously issued a statement on 15th July 2024 titled “MURIC To Makinde: Stop Friday Programs,” warning against the scheduling of state events during Muslim worship hours. “Seyi Makinde has come after Friday again,” Akintola declared. “This coming coronation programme will be the third example. Once is happenstance, twice is coincidence, the third time is enemy action.”

While the government has denied involvement in the coronation planning, MURIC remains unconvinced. “How are we sure the committee has not kowtowed to the whims of the state governor?” Akintola asked, reiterating the need for equitable religious representation. “Muslim leaders from across the country will be present. They should not leave with the impression that Friday prayer is not recognized by the Oyo State government.”

In conclusion, MURIC called for a balanced approach to the coronation schedule, urging the committee to respect the religious diversity of Ibadan and Nigeria at large. “Our suggestion is simple: review the programme and ensure that Muslims are not alienated,” Akintola said. “Let the coronation reflect the pluralistic spirit of our society.”

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None of Nigeria’s Presidents have Brigadier Generals as ADC, as the promotion of Tinubu’s ADC was shelved.

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None of Nigeria’s Presidents have Brigadier Generals as ADC, as the promotion of Tinubu’s ADC was shelved.”

The controversial plan to decorate Nurudeen Yusuf, aide-de-camp (ADC) to President Bola Tinubu, as a one-star general on Monday evening was shelved at the last minute after an intervention by two former chiefs of army staff.

Yusuf, who was only decorated as a colonel last January, was to be promoted to the rank of brigadier-general through “special presidential promotion”.

Under normal process, an officer has to be a colonel for at least four years after which he or she will attend the National Defence College (NDC) before they are considered for promotion.

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The approval to bypass the process was conveyed in a letter from the office of the national security adviser (NSA) to the Chief of army staff.

No brigadier has ever been ADC to the president of Nigeria, leading to further disquiet within the military establishment.

Ahead of the planned decoration on Monday, the minister of defence, Chris Musa — who is a retired general — and the chief of army staff, Waidi Shaibu, a lieutenant general, had cut short their visit to Lagos state and returned to the federal capital.

However, two highly respected former army chiefs eventually succeeded in persuading Tinubu to shelve the plan because of the dangers to the military establishment, TheCable learnt.

A presidential source told that the promotion is not going to happen “anytime soon”.

 

 

The cable

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Breaking:Former Chief Justice Of Nigeria Ibrahim Tanko Is Dead

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Former Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Ibrahim Tanko Muhammad (retd.), is dead.

A close source confirmed to SaharaReporters on Tuesday morning that the former head of Nigerian judiciary passed away at a hospital in Saudi Arabia.

“Ex-CJN Tanko Muhammad is dead. He passed away this morning at a Saudi Arabian Hospital,” the source said.

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Nigeria Tracker reports that Late President Muhammadu Buhari appointed late Justice Ibrahim Tanko into the exalted seat after the sacking of his predecessor Justice Samuel Walter Onnoghen over the issue of code of conduct in January 2019.

In Late 2022 Justice Ibrahim Tanko suddenly exited the seat due to what many said intense pressure from cabals in Late President Muhammad Buhari’s presidency and was succeeded by retired Justice olukayode .

Late Justice Ibrahim Tanko Muhammad hails from Bauchi state .

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The Aso Rock Gossip That Made Late President Buhari Lock His Wife Out

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By Yusuf Danjuma Yunusa

In a new biography, former First Lady Aisha Buhari has revealed that late President Muhammadu Buhari began locking his bedroom door, preventing her from gaining access, after hearing rumors within Aso Rock that she intended to kill him.

This personal account is featured in the 600-page book, ‘From Soldier to Statesman: The Legacy of Muhammadu Buhari’, where Aisha Buhari details her experience managing her husband’s health challenges during his presidency.

She stated that the former president, trusting the gossip circulating within the presidential villa, altered some of his personal habits as a result.

The biography, which was authored by Charles Omole, director-general of the Institute for Police and Security Policy Research, was launched at the presidential villa in Abuja.

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Many high-profile persons and political chieftains, including President Bola Tinubu, attended the launch.

In the book, Aisha said Buhari’s 2017 health crisis was not a mysterious ailment or the effect of poisoning, but began after a broken feeding routine and mismanaged nutritional habits.

The former first lady said she had long managed her husband’s meals and supplements at specific hours, adding that the regimen helped Buhari to maintain stability.

“According to Aisha Buhari, her husband’s 2017 health crisis did not originate as a mysterious ailment or a covert plot. It started, she says, with the loss of a routine; ‘my nutrition,’ she describes it, a pattern of meals and supplements she had long overseen in Kaduna before they moved into Aso Villa,” the book reads.

When they moved to the villa, she said she convened a meeting with close staff including Suhayb Rafindadi, the physician; Bashir Abubakar, the chief security officer; the housekeeper, and the DSS DG to explain the plan.

After some time, the plan was discontinued.

“When the Presidency’s machinery took over our private lives, I explained the plan: daily, at specific hours, cups and bowls with tailored vitamin powders and oil, a touch of protein here, a change to cereals there. Elderly bodies require gentle, consistent support,” Aisha was quoted as saying in the book.

“Then came the gossip and the fearmongering. They said I wanted to kill him.

“My husband believed them for a week or so,” she said, adding that the president began locking his room, changed small habits, and crucially, “meals were delayed or missed; the supplements were stopped”.

“For a year, he did not have lunch. They mismanaged his meals,” she added.

Aisha denied stories of plots to poison her husband, adding that Buhari’s health began deteriorating because of “loss of a routine, ‘my nutrition,’ was the genesis of the crisis”.

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