One Alhaji Abdulrasheed Anthony Asukwo, on Friday in Uyo issued a statement, stating that he is now the new leader of the Muslim community in Akwa Ibom.

The statement signed and released by Alhaji Abdulrasheed Asukwo himself, called on “all Muslim throughout the world to cooperate with Muslim in Akwa Ibom, for a new world order,” which, he said, “promises peace, love, unity and progress for all mankind.”

“As the chairman of youth ambassadors for peace, I will use my wealth of goodwill to empower the youth without any consideration of religious affiliation,” he stated.

In the statement, News Express observed that the new leader did not however specify or distinguish between being “a new leader of Muslim community in Akwa Ibom,” and “chairman of youth ambassadors for peace.”

The new leader claimed: “Islam as a religion of peace at all times, seeks to promote whatever will usher in peaceful co-existence and against all false claims that Islam is definitely not a religion of the sword.”

On the activities of the Islamic extremists, Boko Haram ravaging the northern parts of Nigeria, Abdulrasheed said that members of the killer sect “are pretenders to the Islam religion, because they are not in any way promoting the cause of Islam.” He, therefore, urged the youths in Akwa Ibom to “ignore the false claims by the sect and join hands” with him “to promote peace, progress and unity.”

He said he would do a lot to enhance peaceful co-existence between Muslim and Christians in Uyo, and promised to ensure the establishment of empowerment centres to cater for “the continued education of the two major religious groups” in the state, as he appealed to his Muslim counterparts to “be good ambassadors in any community” they find themselves.

Speaking to News Express on telephone today, the leader of the Hausa Community in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, Alhaji Hassan Sadauki, who said he had no knowledge of such published statement, as such, he could not confirm or deny the development, but simply remarked, “My brother, this is not an issue to discuss on cell phone, it should be addressed in details face to face,” adding however, “there is no cause for alarm because, there is no problem over such a matter.”

•Photo shows Muslims praying.

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