The Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar III, has warned political leaders against using stolen public funds to sponsor pilgrimages to Mecca and Jerusalem.
The Sultan made the remarks on Wednesday in Abuja during the public presentation of the EFCC’s interfaith manual to religious organisations, stressing that God does not condone corruption.
“And we as religious leaders, we must fight corruption. Why? Because God Almighty doesn’t like corruption. You cannot steal money and then send people to Jerusalem and Mecca with corrupt money, and then you think God will accept your deeds. No,” he said.
“God is not corrupt, so He doesn’t like corruption. So you cannot use corrupt money to send people to Jerusalem or to Saudi Arabia for Hajj or for any other thing.”
The monarch called on religious leaders to unite and support the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in its efforts to tackle corruption.
“And whoever is involved, even our brothers, our sisters, our fathers, our friends, those involved should face the law,” he told the gathering.
“And law is no respecter of anybody. Whoever does something wrong, he should face the law. And when he’s facing the law, don’t tell me he is the pastor of so-so and so church, he’s the chief man of so-so and so national mosque.
“We don’t want to hear that. Let the EFCC go after that person, whoever it is, and deal with him according to the law, and the law is a law.”
