… Prof. Pakistan replaces him
By Muhammad Hamisu Abdullahi
The chairman of Kano State branch of the Council of Ulama, Sheikh Ibrahim Khalil has been removed from office.
His removal was announced to journalists on Monday at a press conference held by a joint group of members of various Islamic sects at Press Center, the secretariat of the state Council of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ).
The group comprises Izala, Tijjaniyya and Kadiriyya movements.
Addressing the journalists at the briefing, the group secretary, Malam Jamilu Abubakar, said the removal of Sheikh Khalil became necessary in view of the various offences he committed.
They accused the cleric of politicising the council; failure to expand membership derive of the council across all the local government areas of the state; lack of dispensation of justice among other Islamic sects, especially the three ones mentioned above; failure to carry all council members along; conducting personal political meetings at the premises of the council; his failure to make the council function effectively in response to the current situations or demands of the Umma; derailing the council from its statutory responsibilities and his partisanship in politics.
He said despite his role as the leader of the council, Sheikh Khalil, on several occasions, aspired to contest for political office, adding that failure of any incumbent governor to dance to the tune of the cleric, amounted to abuses on such a governor by the Sheikh, a situation the joint groups unanimously described as unbecoming of a person holding such position.
They cited occurrences of such behavior on the part of the cleric to have happened during the administration of the former governor of the state, Malam Ibrahim Shekaru and of recent, during the current administration of Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje.
Malam Abubakar said the removal of the cleric from office was a unanimous decision of the group, adding that Prof. Abdullahi Sale Pakistan, from Izala group, has been appointed to replace Sheikh Khalil on a temporary basis.
Those who spoke on behalf of the sects, Ustaz Saifullahi Adam Assudani, Izala; Sheikh Halifa Gama, Tijjaniyya and Sheikh Abdulqadir Ramadhan from Kadiriyya movements, all supported the removal of Sheikh Khalil in order to ensure what they called sanity in the running of the affairs of the council.
