KADUNA—Sheik Ibraheem Zakzaky, yesterday, replied the open letter written to him by a prominent Islamic scholar, Sheik Ahmed Abubakar Gumi, accusing him of working for Israel.
Gumi had in his widely published letter, yesterday, said that El- Zakzaky was leading a band of lawless youths which often attracted state-sponsored violence on them. He also accused the Zaria-based leader of the Shiites in the country of preaching hate and dividing the Muslim Ummah.
However, in his response, through the media wing of his organisation, El-Zakzaky rejected Gumi’s reference to him as a brother in his letter which was meant to condole him on the loss of his three children, saying Gumi was shedding crocodile tears.
El-Zakzaky’s letter signed by Mallam Zakary Usman read in part: “We are not surprised with the content of an open letter written by Dr. Gumi, meant for His Eminence Sheikh Ibraheem Yaqoub Zakzaky at this particular time (forget the sinister ‘My Brother’ tone and the crocodile tears of condolence).
“This is not the first time Dr. Gumi is complaining that members of the Islamic Movement led by Sheikh Zakzaky are blocking public roads in the name of procession. In 2009, Gumi registered the same complaint during his Tafsir in Sultan Bello Mosque. He went ahead dangerously to call on the government to shoot those he called ‘Shi’ites’ blocking public roads.
“We believe that the letter was written with insidious intent to pave the way for a greater onslaught on the Islamic Movement and Sheikh Zakzaky. It was also meant to incite Muslims against those he referred to as Shi’ite.
“The arrogant world powers, U.S. and Israel, are now all out to assassinate Sheikh Zakzaky and unleash terrorist attacks on all public gatherings of the movement, especially the Arba’een symbolic trek.
“This is exactly what Dr. Gumi is doing through the letter. He is doing their dirty work. For Dr. Gumi who has lost credibility even among his circles to claim that, the Shi’ites are chanting “hate songs”, is like the pot calling the kettle black. In most of his talk shows that he calls Tafsir, he spends substantial part of his time unleashing venoms on Shi’a and Sheikh Zakzaky, while his uninformed and unruly listeners pollutes the air with war cry.
“For long Dr. Gumi has lost credibility among the Muslim fold, as he constantly sells Israel above the Muslims Ummah, describing Jews as the most religious and intelligent race over the Muslims.”
vanguard
