Amid worsening economic conditions across Nigeria, Islamic cleric and Director-General of Al-Habibiyyah Islamic Society, Imam Fuad Adeyemi, has made a passionate appeal to government authorities to urgently address the hardship being faced by ordinary Nigerians.
Speaking on the Inside Sources programme hosted by Laolu Akande on Channels Television, Imam Adeyemi revealed the depth of public frustration and desperation, saying he sometimes avoids his mosque due to overwhelming demands from people seeking help.
“At times, I run away from the mosque because of the demand of people,” he confessed, highlighting how difficult it has become for religious and community leaders to meet the expectations and needs of the people under their care.
“I live with it, I experience it, I touch it and it touched me. So I can tell you authoritatively, people are really suffering and government need to do something to cushion the effect of this thing, the policy which they are doing,” he noted.
Imam Adeyemi did not mince words in criticizing the attitudes of those in political office, warning that leadership is a divine responsibility that must not be abused. He said, “The issue of the government and the led now, I pity the people in positions of authority because the position of authority is taking the seat of God. When you take the seat of God on a particular group of people and you do not do the right thing, the Prophet tells us that anybody who is in a position… and does not struggle to make the people it’s leading, to make their life better… he will not have the fragrance of paradise, talk less of entering it.”
In a deeply reflective tone, he stressed that political office is temporary and that leaders must be accountable. “The positions you are holding, wallahi, it is temporary… When they say permanent, what is permanent in secretary? If your age does not remove you, the number of service will remove you… So what is permanent in whatever you think you have gotten?” he asked rhetorically.
Speaking on the performance of President Bola Tinubu’s administration, Imam Adeyemi acknowledged some visible improvements in infrastructure, particularly in Abuja. “Sincerely, Abuja has transformed. But you can ask under which costs. Notwithstanding, I can authoritatively tell you that Abuja has really, really improved… In terms of the roads. So many infrastructures have been there,” he stated.
He also praised recent reforms in property tax and housing contributions, arguing, “People must pay for what they are using… I would give the government kudos for this… I want something to be organized.”
However, he raised concerns about the lack of effective palliatives to cushion the effects of harsh economic policies. “Perhaps government has a good intention with the policies that are put in place. But the palliatives that need to cushion the effects… if at all government has put it in place, it has not been enough. Or if it is enough, it has been cornered by a group of people who are close to government,” he warned.
Describing the lived experience of hardship among the masses, the cleric lamented, “People on the streets, we don’t want to read anything in the newspaper. We don’t want to hear the World Bank… What we can read is: Am I eating well? Am I not eating well? My children, can they go to school averagely? Can I get basic health care?”
Imam Adeyemi also pointed to the role of religious institutions in supporting the masses, especially during festive periods. “We do not only feed 3,000 people. We fed 3,000 people on Salah day. We also slaughter rams… you can come to the mosque and take as much as we could afford… Although we have many people that trusted us and supported us… we make sure that it goes round to as many people as possible,” he explained.
“I relate with people. I am not the type that it is what we read on television, that’s what we talk about alone. I live with it, I experience it, I touch it and it touched me… people are really suffering and government needs to do something to cushion the effect of this policy which they are doing,” the cleric said.
