Bandits Have No Religion: Oluwo of Iwo Faults Profiling Muslims

The Oluwo of Iwo, Oba Abdulrosheed Akanbi, has condemned the religious profiling of bandits as Muslims, insisting that criminality should not be associated with Islam.

In a statement issued on Saturday by his Chief Press Secretary, Ibrahim Alli, the monarch said bandits lack the basic attributes that qualify an individual as a Muslim. He stressed that wearing a turban or bearing an Arabic name does not make anyone a follower of Islam.

According to him, bandits neither observe the five daily Islamic prayers nor exhibit other religious practices expected of Muslims.

“I condemn in totality the religious profiling of bandits as Muslims. Real Muslims are not bandits. You cannot see a mosque in the den of bandits. The herdsmen don’t equally have mosques in their abode, Gaa. They have no identification of Muslims in all ramifications,” Oba Akanbi said.

The traditional ruler further argued that turbans are not exclusive to Muslims, noting that many non-Muslims in desert regions also wear them.

He also dismissed claims that the Arabic spoken by some bandits is proof of their religion, explaining that Arabic is used by people of different faiths.

“Bandits have no religion. Have you ever seen where bandits observe solat? They might be wearing turbans, but not only Muslims wear turbans. People in the desert who are not Muslims also wear turbans. 

“Many churches in Arab countries use the Arabic language to preach. We have people in all Islamic-populated countries who are not Muslims but speak Arabic,” he said.

Oba Akanbi described the continued association of banditry with Islam as unfair, attributing the activities of some bandits to the failure of past governments rather than religion.

He urged Nigerians to stop linking banditry to Islam and called on the government to take legislative action against social media commentators he accused of using online platforms to discredit Muslims.