We Turned Down Jonathan’s $3 Million – Islamic Groups

The Conference of Islamic Organizations, CIO, has revealed that officials of the past administration of Dr. Goodluck Jonathan offered it $3 million to secure its members support for the former president’s re-election.

Coordinator of the organization, Abdullahi Shuaib, stated this on Saturday at the 22nd National Islamic Training Programme NITP, held at Odosengolu near Ijebu-Ode, Ogun State.

Mr. Shuaib said the CIO and The Muslim Congress, TMC, rejected the money after it was offered to them under the guise of “religious fund”.

“It is not a secret, they came, offering us over $3 million”, he said. “We said no….It came through their proxies to us and we said no. And today we have been vindicated”.

Mr. Shuaib, who is also the Executive Director/CEO, Zakat and Sadaqat foundation, an arm of TMC, added that “it is not even part of our own culture to take bribe. We prefer to go hungry than to collect a bribe from somebody and then eat what is unlawful”.

Shedding more light on why the money was rejected, the official added that “because we know very well that it was bait; it was a poison and you cannot eat and dine with the devil and think the devil will not come after you.

“We said clearly no. It is completely un-Islamic. All those organisations that actually took and swallowed the bait, today, they all know what it means for them to have allowed the devil and themselves to eat and dine with the devil”.

Mr. Shuaib also condemned all those who collected funds from the Office of the National Security Adviser, ONSA.

“It is morally wrong, it is unethical for any organisation, either Muslim or Christian or traditionalist to have indulged in that reckless looting of treasury, the common wealth and there is no way they can exonerate themselves because they have desecrated the house of God because they symbolize the House of God and they have desecrated it and it is a sacrilege and it is wrong.

“Ethically it is wrong, morally it is wrong, socially, it is wrong, economically it is wrong, legally it is wrong. And I think, we should allow the long arm of the law to catch up with them and let the law take its course over them”, he said.