BIOLA AZEEZ writes on the lingering controversy over who occupies the position of Grand Chief Imam in Ogbomoso, Oyo State, and the efforts to bring lasting solution to the crisis.
The office of the Grand Chief Imam of a community, town or city is quite an important spiritual position of influence.
The Grand Chief Imam is highly significant in many Muslim communities, particularly in countries with substantial Muslim populations. There are widely held reasons for this.
First, the Grand Chief Imam provides spiritual guidance and direction to the Muslim community, interpreting Islamic teachings and offering counsel on religious matters.
Second, the Grand Chief Imam often serves as a unifying figure, bringing together diverse Muslim groups and factions under a shared religious identity.
Third, the Grand Chief Imam may play a role in promoting education, social welfare, and community development initiatives that benefit the broader community.
In addition, the Grand Chief Imam often represents the Muslim community in interfaith dialogue and engagement with other religious leaders, fostering greater understanding and cooperation.
He also helps preserve Islamic traditions, customs, and values, ensuring their continuation for future generations. He possesses significant moral authority, influencing public opinion and shaping community norms and values.
In some cases, the Grand Chief Imam may help to mediate conflicts and disputes within the Muslim community, promote peace and reconciliation. He also represents the Muslim community in national and international forums, advocating their rights and interests.
Overall, the position of Grand Chief Imam holds immense importance in promoting spiritual growth, community cohesion, and social development within Muslim communities worldwide.
In view of these reasons stated, concerned members of the public, especially the Muslim community, were baffled, confused and embarrassed over discordant tunes that have been heard on the issue surrounding the Grand Chief Imam of Ogbomoso; judged by lofty roles expected of a person occupying such influential position of authority in any Islamic society.
In the arrangement to select the Grand Chief Imam of Ogbomoso, the paramount ruler of the ancient town of Ogbomoso, known as the Soun Ogbomoso, is that personality who picks from the six groups that have always produced the Islam’s most exalted position in the ancient town.
This arrangement is rotated among the six families of Musifa, Bango, Abogunde, Aduin, Alawiye and Ayilara who hold sway in turn.
Investigation, however, revealed that the understanding and agreement among the people is now under threat, unless immediate action is taken by the stakeholders, including the government.
As it is, two Grand Chief Imams have been announced and are presently calling the shots.
One Grand Chief Imam, Dr Toliat Yunus Ayilara, was turbaned by the immediate past Soun of Ogbomoso, Alhaji Jimoh Oladunni Oyewunmi Jagungbade III, while the other Grand Chief Imam, who is a kinsman of the first, Habeeb Mahmud Usman Ayilara, was also turbaned by the present Soun, Pastor Ghandi Olaoye Arumogege III, who has designated him as Palace Imam.
The emergence of another Grand Chief Imam after the turbaning of Dr Toliat, one year after, was not only queried but also raised dust in the town among the supporters of the two religious leaders who have threatened a showdown if their preferred candidates are not upheld.
The current issue can be traced to three years ago when the late monarch allowed Muslim stakeholders to pick their spiritual leaders. This favour was celebrated all around the town and beyond because the people anticipated that the era of friction over the selection of the imam was gone for good.
The Grand Chief Imam would, henceforth, be considered and picked by the major stakeholders having taken into consideration certain criteria.
It will also be recalled that the late Soun Oyewunmi added a clause to the process of appointing a grand chief imam – this was the academic prowess of such a candidate. He instructed the committee saddled with the appointment of the new Islamic religious leader to always ensure that their choice must be thoroughly educated.
The condition led to the discovery of a PhD holder, Toliat Yunus Ayilara, who was then a Chief Imam of Adiam Memorial Central Mosque in Iporo-Ake in Abeokuta, Ogun State.
Dr Toliat was invited home by the Ogbomoso Muslim community, who in the spirit of fairness, had thrown the contest open to all interested aspirants in Ayilara family.
Speaking on the development, the chairman Ogbomoso Muslim Community, Alhaji Akintoye Areago Onisaapa, said that, “Since it was the turn of the Ayilara family to produce new Grand Chief Imam, we called for interest and four people eventually indicated interest.”
Alhaji Akintoye, who said that the family screened the aspirants that included Habeeb Usman Mahmud Ayilara, added that the family later announced the selection of Dr Toliat.
“This didn’t go down well with some members of the family who protested the emergence of Toliat. They came to us at the council and we in our little capacity appealed for peace and conducted our own re-screening procedures. This was conducted by a four-man committee headed by Sheikh Rasheed Abdulazeez.
“Other members were Sheikh Alim AbdulWahab, who once acted as the Chief Imam after the demise of Sheikh AbdulYakeen Ashafa in 2021; Alhaji Mikhail Bello and AbdulRazaq who served as the secretary,” Alhaji Akintoye said.
He stated further that, “The committee again declared Toliat winner,” adding that Toliat was at this juncture turbaned by Oba Oyewunmi in his palace at an event that was well witnessed by all and sundry.”
Ironically, a year after, some members of Ayilara family rose to contest Toliat’s paternity.
The circumstance was so grave that Toliat’s mother was summoned to the Soun’s Palace where she was said to have been quizzed.
“When she came here, I remember she told all of us that she never married twice; that she was only married into Ayilara family. She even said that all her children were for the Ayilara family,” a source in the palace (names withheld) said.
It was also gathered that Oba Ghandi had initially accepted the paternity claim of the imam, but for some Ayilara family members who insisted that he must go. The monarch, thus, became skeptical about it.
“Not that the Kabiyesi willingly reopened the case against the Grand Chief Imam. He was said to have been forced to do it especially when an undisclosed member of the family informed the monarch that he partook in forging the academic certificates for the grand chief imam.
“This couldn’t be swept under the rug, forcing Kabiyesi to change his mind and position,” another palace source hinted.
It was also gathered that several moves were made to douse the brewing tension that in no small measure threatened the existing peace among the Muslims, especially, that which arose over the allegations against Toliat.
Consequently, a high-powered peace committee involving Dr Saka Adegbite Balogun; Senator Hamzat Ayoade Adeosun; Alhaji AbdulHameed Monsur Ejide and Alhaji AbdulRazaq Sadik also attempted to find lasting peace to the raging crisis.
The Islamic Muslim Community (IMC) said it has made four different moves to quell the crises that had lingered till moment, saying: “we as Muslims had about four meetings to resolve it.”
Aside the individual peace moves, the Sultan of Sokoto, Emir Abubakar Sa’ad, on his part, has made moves by raising a committee headed by the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB) Professor Is’haq Oloyede, who alongside his members, met the warring camps in Ilorin.
The committee met with 32 members from both the pro-Toliat and anti-Toliat camps at the end of which three people were picked from each side to return home and find lasting solutions to the lingering disunity. “They have not met in the past three weeks ago when they were directed to do so,” Alhaji Akintoye of the IMC regretted.
He described the happenings as a stain on Islam, “this is like ridiculing Islam because the king that denied our Grand Chief imam is a Christian,” Alhaji Akintoye said.
He, however, recalled that a “similar situation once happened during Oba Oyewunmi’s era when there was a crisis with the Christians. They came to him for his position, but he bluntly said that, ‘since I am a Muslim, I won’t be in a good position to be involved.’”
The last straw in the face-off between the palace and Dr Toliat happened earlier this year when the Federal Government picked the Islamic leader as one of the spiritual delegates to hajj in Saudi Arabia.
For not taking permission from the monarch, he was said to have been asked to return home amidst the (then) ongoing spiritual exercise.
The Imam couldn’t make it home as spontaneously demanded by the Kabiyesi. This confirmed the erstwhile managed cold-war between the duo as the monarch is alleged to have immediately blocked his phone lines as well as refused audience with him.
When asked, an ally of the Imam responded: “how could he have taken permission from him (king) when he wouldn’t see him and has blocked his phone lines?”
In the search for lasting solution that would ensure elusive peace among Muslims, the Akeweje Musulumi Ogbomoso, Alhaji Biliaminu Olubukola Badmos, alleged that refusal of Dr Toliat to agree with some high-ranking Muslims over financial matters, led to their support for his opposition.
Alhaji Badmos, who frowned at Toliat’s opposition, said that the community would not accept a development whereby the monarch eventually goes ahead with the plan to appoint Imam Habeeb into the central mosque.
According to him: “The ongoing crisis has described us as a disorganised group. Kabiyesi should just forgive us wherever and however we might have erred and allow peace to return because there will be crisis in Ogbomoso.
“This is a case of a thief that stole the King’s trumpet, where will he blow it? If Habeeb is eventually made the Grand Chief Imam, we youths will resist him because we as youths have decided to go along with Toliat as our Grand Chief Imam,” Akeweje Musulumi said.
With the present development, the view of the concerned members of the public is that peace and harmony should be allowed to reign because neither spiritual nor physical development of any sort can take place in a rancorous environment.
The stakeholders involved have been asked to toe the path of peace to achieve the much needed harmonious relationship that will usher in better development and growth.
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