Jos crises: Muslim group urges religious leaders to preach forgiveness, reconciliation

Jos crises: Muslim group urges religious leaders to preach forgiveness, reconciliation

President North Central Muslim Peace Initiative (NCMPI), Alhaji Saleh Zazzaga, has called on religious leaders to intensify the preaching of peaceful coexistence, forgiveness and reconciliation in order to tackle the current crises in some parts of Plateau State which has continued to lead to killings and destruction of properties.

Zazzaga who spoke to newsmen on Friday said religious leaders, Christian and Muslim clerics alike, should wake up to their obligation and ensure that peace return to the state since their followers believe in them and do whatever they admonish them.

According to him, this is not the time to preach hate messages in either the churches or mosques as it would aggravate the crises, adding that should there be wild spread violence, it would not affect only the economic activities or people's wellbeing but their religious practice as well.

He urged the youths to shun any act of violence, including that of some merchants of crises pushing them to perpetrate violence, explaining that the sponsors of such would never send their close wards to perpetrate viol except children of others.

The President equally called on the security agents to step up their security watch and ensure the protection of lives and properties, because silent killings are still going on in some areas.

He urged the security outfit to manned their personnel along all the flash point areas and junctions in Jos-Bukuru metropolis (which they, the security agents, already know) so that criminals and hoodlums don't continue attacking innocent citizens in whatever guise.

He commended Plateau State Governor, Simon Lalong, for his effective intervention which is aimed at nipping the violence in the bud, because without the intervention and other measures taken, the crises would have spread than it did.

Zazzaga called on all the community leaders, traditional rulers and peace loving residents to expose those taking laws into their hands and perpetrating violence in their areas/communities because in the event of security clampdown on such community/area, many people would bear the brunt.