By: Bakary Ceesay
Imam Abdoulie Fatty, an outspoken Islamic Scholar has frown at Constitutional Review Committee (CRC) for not involving the Islamic scholars during the consultations.
The new government set up the CRC to review the 1997 Constitution; which currently they are on public consultation to sound the opinions of people both at home and abroad about the new Constitution.
“Why is it that on the Constitutional Review Process, Islamic scholars are not part of it, we have many Islamic scholars here who are proficient in both English and Arabic but are not part of the process, “ Fatty, a former Imam of State House questioned.
He was speaking during a lecture organised by Masjid Sulayman Youths Association at Dippa Kunda recently. The lecture was held under the theme: “To shed on some issues on the Constitutional Review Process”
He added: “We have our own book that guides us that is the Holy Quran, it will forbids a Muslim to trust the Constitution and leaving behind the Quran,”
“If you go to the court or you are to be taken a new office, they would have sworn you with the Holy Quran, why they are not to be sworn in with the Constitution, so as Muslims we should hold the Holy Quran as the our guiding principle than the man made obsession which majority of it does not favor Islam,”
“It is a pity, that the President agreed that he cannot draft a Constitution alone, deem it wise to involve the public, however it is so sad during the Constitutional Review Committee tour that I did not see anyone who is advocating for Islam,” he pointed out.
According to him, issues raised during the CRC tour are death penalty, secular state and so many more.
He stressed that: “Anyone who is advocating for Secular State is a Kafirr (Non-Believer), if you agree to Secular State in future our Mosques, and Islamic teachers who are teaching in schools would be abandoned, female genital mutilation, polygamy and early marriage will be banned”
“Let us not allow Gambia to be named a Secular State in the upcoming Constitution, otherwise children rights and women rights will be embedded there, which will affect our faith as Muslims. Let us be careful if the CRC team comes to our areas in that anything concerned Islam should be our priority,”
He advised the youths not to allow Secular State in the Gambia because Secularism is Kafirr (Non-Believers) which should not be allowed in a place where majority are Muslims.
He then said that: “There was a time in the Gambia that no police station was in Banjul, Serekunda, but people were living in a peaceful manner.”
He further explained that today the West has come with their so-called ideologies being imposed on the people which have had negative impact in the society.
“Thank to God the almighty Allah for making majority of Gambians, who are in the helms of affairs to be Muslims, so that this country would remain as Muslim country,” he claimed.
