As Nigerian Muslims join millions of their fellow faithfuls all over the world to mark the end of 2025 Ramadan season, an Islamic human rights organization, the Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC), has demanded an end to the oppression of Nigerian Muslims.

According to the group, Nigerian Muslims remain under conquest until they are given all civil liberties due to them, including but not limited to the declaration of the first day of the Islamic calendar (1st Muharam) as a public holiday like 1st January of every year.

This was stated in the Id Al-Fitr message released on Sunday, 30th March, 2025 by the Executive Director of the organization, Professor Ishaq Akintola.

The statement reads:

“As Nigerian Muslims join millions of their fellow faithfuls all over the world to mark the end of 2025 Ramadan season, we send felicitations to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Vice President Kashim Shettima and the Sultan of Sokoto and President General of the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA), Alhaji Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar.

“As the beginning of Ramadan is believed to herald forgiveness while its middle is full of blessings and its end signals emancipation, we call for an end to all forms of oppression being visited upon Nigerian Muslims.

“We contend that Nigerian Muslims have been under conquest since the British invasion of the Sokoto Caliphate up to the last stand of Sultan Attahiru in 1903. From the look of things, they (Muslims) will remain under conquest until they are given all civil liberties due to them, including, but not limited to, the declaration of the first day of the Islamic calendar (1st Muharram) as a holiday like 1st January of every year.

“We remind the Federal Government (FG) that it has been instrumental to the perpetuation of the persecution of Muslims in this country through its failure to declare the first day of the Islamic calendar (1st Muharram) as a holiday like 1st January of every year.

“We demand parity. Hijrah holiday is part of our Allah-given fundamental human rights. It is sad that only a few states have declared Hijrah holiday while FG has continued to dilly dally. Why should FG give the Christians 1st January holiday nationwide while only a few states recognize the Islamic holiday of 1st Muharram. Isn’t what is good for the goose equally good for the gander? Or is Nigeria a Christian state?

“Nigerian Muslims are being treated like a conquered people. It is as if reminiscences of 1903 are being flashed before our eyes to remind us that we were once conquered. We are being treated like second class citizens.

“We demand equal rights and justice. 1st January is equal to 1st Muharram in inter-religious tolerance equation. There is no better time than now. The fact that more than eight states have recognized 1st Muharram and declared it as a holiday makes it a strong case even for FG and we see no reason why a Muslim-Muslim ticket will hesitate to liberate Nigerian Muslims who have been under the yoke of religious marginalization for so long.

“Perhaps FG will understand where MURIC is coming from if it realizes that it has been a long struggle all along. There was a time in this country when Muslims could not go for ‘Id (Salah) prayer because the colonial government did not declare holiday for Salah. Muslims were forced to go to work or school on their Salah day.

“There was a time when Maolud Nabiyyi (the birthday of Prophet Muhammad SAW) was not recognized whereas that of Jesus (peace be upon him) has been recognized from day one of the 1914 amalgamation. Is this justice?

*“We have always had to agitate for freedom stage by stage. We struggled separately for Id al-Kabir, then for Id al-Fitr and later for Maolud! Till today we are still struggling for 1st Muharram. When cometh freedom? When?*

“Although the British Christian colonial masters who robbed the ‘conquered’ Muslims of all their civil liberties have left since 1960 and 1963, successive Nigerian governments have failed to set the Muslims free.

“Enough is enough. We reject a life of subservience. The current administration must let the Muslims go. We demand the declaration of the next 1st Muharram, 1447 which is equivalent to Friday, 27th June, 2025 as a national public holiday.”

Professor Ishaq Akintola,
Founder/Executive Director,
Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC).