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From Lukman Olabiyi
The Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA) has expressed deep sorrow over the passing of the Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia, Sheikh Abdulaziz Al-Sheikh, describing his death as a monumental loss to the global Muslim community.
In a condolence message addressed to the Chargé d’Affaires of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in Nigeria, Mr. Saad Fahad Almarri, the council, under the leadership of its President-General and Sultan of Sokoto, His Eminence Alhaji Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar, commiserated with the Royal Kingdom and the Muslim Ummah at large.
“Sheikh Abdulaziz’s death is not only a loss to Saudi Arabia but to the entire Muslim world. As Grand Mufti for more than two decades, Sheikh Al-Sheikh made immense contributions to Islamic jurisprudence and issued landmark fatwas that shaped both Saudi society and the broader global Islamic discourse,” the letter stated.
Citing the words of the Qur’an, the council reminded Muslims of the inevitability of death, quoting from Surah Aal-Imran (3:185): “Every soul shall taste death… whoever is removed from the fire and admitted into Paradise has indeed triumphed. The life of this world is but a deceptive enjoyment.”
The council extended its condolences to the custodian of the two holy mosques, King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, the royal family, the Saudi people, and the global Muslim community.
“We pray that Allah overlook his shortcomings, expand his grave, and admit him into al-Jannatu-l-Firdaws,” the message read.
The statement was signed by the Secretary-General of NSCIA, Prof. Is-haq Oloyede, CON, FNAL, who conveyed that the Nigerian Muslim community stands in grief and solidarity with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia at this time of mourning.
