As Nigeria marks Children’s Day, legal practitioner Onochiengwu Obuna Esq. has called on Nigerian Muslims to embrace a more progressive and peaceful interpretation of Islam, modeled after the practices in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), to help secure a better future for Nigerian children.
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In a statement, Obuna warned that extremist ideologies, such as those fueling Boko Haram and violent herdsmen, are undermining the country’s unity, development, and the safety of future generations.
“For our secured future, Nigerian Muslims must embrace the Saudi or UAE brand of Islamic faith, which never encourages terrorist ideologies that lead to barbarism and backwardness,” Obuna stated.
He noted that Nigeria is part of an interconnected 21st-century global village where peace, unity, and human dignity should guide societal conduct, regardless of religion or ethnicity. However, he lamented that elites in Nigeria have been complicit in fanning the flames of religious and ethnic bigotry, often to the detriment of national cohesion and human lives.
“With respect to religious relationships, Christians and traditional practitioners tend to be more accommodating, while some Muslim brothers appear more aggressive and intolerant in the name of religion or politics,” he said.
Obuna singled out extremist ideologies like those promoted by Boko Haram as fundamentally hypocritical, pointing out that the same people who rail against the West continue to enjoy its technological and social benefits.
“It’s laughable that those who invented Boko Haram still live in comfort provided by Western advancements,” he remarked.
The legal practitioner commended Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince, Mohammed bin Salman, for embracing reforms and openness that have made the kingdom a model for peaceful and progressive Islamic practice. He urged Nigerian Muslim elites to draw lessons from Saudi Arabia and the UAE, using religion as a tool for national development rather than division.
Obuna also criticised certain religious leaders and politicians who acquire luxury properties in places like the UAE while promoting anti-development rhetoric at home.
“It’s disheartening that those who use religion to divide us secretly invest in countries whose values they publicly denounce,” he said.
As the nation celebrates Children’s Day, Obuna called on Nigerians to reflect on their shared responsibility to create a peaceful environment for the country’s young people.
“We have no other country than Nigeria. The love of our children’s future should make us abandon religion, ethnicity, or race as tools of destruction,” he urged.
He concluded with a prayer:
“May God bless our children. May God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”
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