Nobody Can Islamise Nigeria, Says Bakare.

Vice-Presidential candidate of the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) at the April, 2011 presidential election, Pastor Tunde Bakare has  dismissed insinuations that the introduction of Islamic banking was aimed at Islamising Nigeria, saying such an assumption was misplaced.

His call, however, came on a day the Special Adviser to Governor Patrick Yakowa of Kaduna State on Religious Matters (Christian), Rev. Joseph Hayab explained that the reason Christians opposed the introduction of Islamic banking was because some mischievous politicians, especially in the north, could take advantage of the situation to organise thugs to compel their state governors to deposit state funds with the bank.

But speaking in a sermon Sunday in his church, Latter Rain Assembly,  in Lagos, Bakare distanced himself from the criticism of the banking system by Christian leaders, stressing that even though it was christened as Islamic banking, its legality or otherwise remained sacrosanct so long as it operates under the arm-bit of the law creating it.

He further dismissed insinuations that the introduction of Islamic banking was a plot to Islamise Nigerians, maintaining that "nobody can Islamise or Christianise Nigeria."

Instead, he said people were free to practise any religion he or she so desires, explaining that he himself could not impose his own belief on his children if they choose not to follow the Christian faith. Bakare said he had been to Dubai and Bahrain and witnessed developments in those countries.

"Islam is not the problem but the greed of our leaders. I have been to Bahrain, they practice Islam there and there is progress. If they are practising Islam here and there is no progress, then they are practising worselam," he added.

Meanwhile, Hayab said should the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi go ahead with the establishment of the bank, it was likely to cause serious problems because some people may hijack it to cause crisis.
"The issue of Islamic banking or non interest banking is not new. We have people who sought for such license in the past, but the question people are asking is, why attaching it to faith?

"Non interest banking is ok, but when you attach it to faith, it is just like the manner sharia came up. Sharia was propagated and championed by someone in the seat of power, so people misunderstood it," he said.

"If some Muslims out of their desire to promote and champion the cause of Islam and decided to gather money and open Islamic bank, there is no problem. But if it is the sitting Governor of the Central Bank that is spearheading it and insisting that it must be, then people will start asking questions," he said

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