By SALISU SANI-IDRIS

The Management of Abuja National Mosque on Tuesday unveiled five additional resident and visiting Imam for the Mosque.

The Secretary-General, Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA), Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, made this known at a news conference in Abuja.

?As part of the measures to strengthen the Religious Affairs Unit of the National Mosque and to further harness its vast potential as a center for worship, training, learning and scholarship, the council has completed the process of appointing five additional resident and visiting imam for the Mosque.

?The five volunteers have been considered by the General Purpose Committee (GPC) of the NSCIA and subsequently recommended for the endorsement of the Expanded General Purpose Committee (EGPC).

?The EGPC, at its meeting held on Sunday, Dec. 1, endorsed, on behalf of the General Assembly, their appointments, subject to the endorsement of the National Fatwa Committee which has also cleared the five imam as qualified to be Imams of the mosque,? he confirmed.

He listed the imam to include; Prof. Ilyasu Usman (visiting), Prof. Luqman Zakariyah (resident), Sheikh Abdulkadir Salman (visiting), Malam Haroun Eze (resident) and Prof. Khalid Abubakar (visiting).

Oloyede described the appointment of the five imam as a milestone not only in the annals of the national mosque but also in the life of the entire Muslim community in Nigeria.

?You will recalled that during a similar news conference held on Thursday, Nov. 16, 2017, where the changes in the administrative and management of the mosque was done with the appointment of Prof. Shehu Galadanci, as the Murshid.

?I informed you of the intention of the NSCIA to appoint more imams, particularly from the South-South and South East Geopolitical zones.

?To today?s news conference, therefore, is a further fulfilment of that promise,? he said.

Oloyede said the NSCIA, since the establishment of the national mosque in 1984, has been appointing, in succession, qualified Muslims worthy in character and scholarship to oversee the spiritual activities of the faithful.

He also said that the establishment of the Abuja National Mosque Management Board (ANMMB) was a further step to create a structure for the management of the mosque on behalf of the NSCIA.

He commended the President-General of NSCIA and the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa?ad Abubakar III and all members of the Muslim community who have played active roles in supporting ?smooth sail to the shore of today?s success.

?I pray that the Almighty Allah will continue to imbue our Imams with wisdom, knowledge and forthrightness to lead our teeming worshippers aright.

?May He continue to guide and guard the Ummah (Muslim community) to the path of progress,? Oloyede prayed. (NAN)

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