JIBWIS disowns viral video preaching violence, religious intolerance; demands probe

The Jama’atu Izalatil Bid’ah Wa Iqamatis Sunnah (JIBWIS) has distanced itself from a viral video of a group in its First Aid Group uniform chanting threats to Christians.

In the video, the leader of the group is heard soliciting assault rifles to carry out mass killings in churches in Enugu and Plateau states.

The National Chairman of JIBWIS, Abdullahi Bala-Lau, condemned the footage and urged the State Security Services (SSS), the Nigeria Police Force, and other security agencies to launch an immediate investigation, unmask those behind the recording, and prosecute anyone found culpable.

Mr Bala-Lau stated that the inciting remarks and calls for violence are entirely foreign to the core values, teachings, and objectives of JIBWIS.

He cautioned that merely wearing the organisation’s First Aid Group uniform or standing among members does not confer official representation or authority to speak on behalf of the body.

Expressing concern about the video’s timing and nature, the cleric noted that the incident might be a calculated effort by external actors to smear the organisation’s image and undermine national peace.

He pointed to JIBWIS’s peacebuilding track record, citing its recent international conference in Abuja, which convened Christian leaders, scholars from Islamic denominations, and international delegates to foster interfaith harmony and religious tolerance.

Read below the full statement by JIBWIS

The National Chairman of Jama’atu Izalatil Bid’ah Wa Iqamatis Sunnah (JIBWIS), Sheikh Abdullahi Bala Lau, has strongly condemned a viral video showing a man dressed in the uniform of the organisation’s First Aid Group, participating in a jogging exercise and chanting provocative statements calling for AK-47 rifles to be given to them to enable them to travel to Enugu on Sunday and carry out an attack.

Reacting to the disturbing development, Sheikh Bala Lau called on the Department of State Services (DSS), the Nigeria Police Force and other relevant security agencies to immediately investigate the incident, identify those responsible and ensure that anyone found culpable is brought to justice in accordance with the law.

The National Chairman categorically dissociated JIBWIS from the inflammatory statements, stressing that such expressions of violence, intimidation and threats against any community are completely alien to the principles, teachings and objectives upon which the organisation was established.

He emphasised that wearing the JIBWIS First Aid Group uniform or appearing among its members does not automatically mean an individual is acting on behalf of the organisation or with its authorisation.

Sheikh Bala Lau further expressed concern that the incident could represent a deliberate attempt by individuals or external interests to misrepresent the organisation and damage its longstanding reputation. He therefore urged security agencies to thoroughly investigate the circumstances surrounding the video, including the identity, affiliation and possible motives of those involved.

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The Chairman recalled that JIBWIS recently organised an international conference in Abuja, bringing together Christian leaders, Muslim scholars from different Islamic schools of thought, prominent personalities and participants from different parts of the world, with the central objective of promoting interfaith dialogue, mutual understanding, religious tolerance and peaceful coexistence.

He questioned how an organisation that has consistently invested its resources, leadership and institutional efforts in building bridges across religious and ethnic divides could reasonably be associated with statements advocating violence against fellow Nigerians.

For approximately 48 years since its establishment, JIBWIS has remained committed to the propagation of authentic Islamic teachings, the promotion of the Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad (SAW), moral reformation, education, humanitarian services and the peaceful coexistence of people irrespective of their religious, ethnic or geographical backgrounds.