Kano State government has dismissed as unjustifiable a claim attributed to former secretary to the government of the federation (SGF), Babachir Lawal, that the Ganduje Foundation, a philanthropic organisation, is being used by Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje to force some Christians to join Islam.
A statement issued by the commissioner for information, Malam Muhammad Garba, indicated that the comment was totally false considering that there is no compulsion in religion, adding that Islam gave individuals the freedom to choose their own religion, and also provided non-Muslims with considerable economic, cultural and administrative rights.
He said there was never a time any Christian or non-believer is forced to embrace Islam by the foundation because it negates the teachings of Islam, but are called to Islam at their wish just as the missionaries go to villages in Kano to invite non-believers to embrace Christianity.
Garba said it was unfortunate that at a time when the country needs to be united for national development and religious tolerance, a man of Babachir’s calibre, who is highly respected, would spread falsehood without much consideration to his position in the All Progressives Congress (APC) and close relationship with the party’s flagbearer, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu.