The Sultan of Sokoto and President-General of the Nigeria Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA), Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar III, has declared that nobody should be compelled to convert to Islam, emphasising that everyone has the right to practise their preferred religion.
Speaking at the NSCIA General Assembly held at the National Mosque in Abuja, the Sultan maintained that embracing Islam must be a personal decision rather than an act of coercion.
“We do not intend to force anybody to join Islam,” he stated, adding that people had continued to embrace the religion out of their own free will, in accordance with the Quranic principle that there is no compulsion in religion.
He also called on Christians and Muslims to stop making derogatory remarks about one another, stressing that mutual respect was necessary for peaceful coexistence.
At a separate International Conference on National Security for Socio-economic Development in Abuja, organised by JIBWIS Nigeria in collaboration with the Muslim World League of Saudi Arabia, the monarch urged followers of both religions to embrace tolerance.
“We must be honest with ourselves that Christians can stop insulting Muslims. Muslims can stop ins¥lting Christians. And that’s how we live in peace,” he said.
He further maintained that neither religious group should consider itself superior to the other, noting that everyone is equal before God.
