“…on behalf of all Egba muslims, hereby passed a vote of confidence on the Chief Imam, Egbland, Alhaji Sa’adaLllah Bamgbola as the only custodian of Islamic religion in Egbaland.

“We unequivocally condemned the action of selected chiefs in Egbaland to suspend the Chief Imam of Egbaland without proper consultations with all the Imams in all the sections of Egbaland.

“The selected Egba chiefs led by Baba Adini, Navy Captain Rashid Raji has no power to suspend the grand chief Imam of Egbaland, who was unanimously appointed by all custodians of Islamic religion in Egbaland.

“The Chief Imam of Egbaland should by virtue of all principal Imams in Egbaland, and by virtue of the position we have taken here by Imams and Alfas to continue carrying out all his spiritual functions of Islamic religion without any hinderance.”

That is the resolution of the Muslim community in Egbaland, at the end of a meeting of Imamds and Alfas led by the sectional Imams in Egbaland held at the Egba Central Mosque, Kobiti, Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital, on Tuesday.

The meeting was called in response to the purported suspension of Chief Imam of Egbaland, Alhaji Sa’adaLla Bamgbola by some Egba Chiefs led by Navy Captain Rasheed Raji (rtd.).

The Chiefs, Monday, announced the suspension of the Chief Imam over alleged "high handedness, administrative exclusivity, mishandling of funds and conflicting of interest between his position as the Chief Imam and membership of another association".

But, reacting, the three principal Chief Imams who made up the other three sections of Egbaland, condemned the purported suspension of the grand Chief Imam of Egbaland, describing it as an "embarrassment to the Islamic religion and the entire people of Egbaland".

The Imams are: the Chief Imam of Oke Ona, Alhaji Musliudeen Nasirudeen; Chief Imam of Gbagura, Prof. Kamaludeen Balogun and the Chief Imam of Owu, Alhaji Kehinde Sulaiman.

Speaking on behalf of the Muslim community, the Chief Imam of Gbagura, Prof. Balogun said, the suspension of the grand Chief Imam was null and void because it did not follow the stipulated process of appointment and removal of Imams in the land.

Prof Balogun said the suspension was ill conceived and capable of causing a religious war in the town, insisting that, the four sections that made up Egbaland must be carried along in the appointment or suspension of the Chief Imam.

The cleric said, only the council of Islamic clerics in the town has the power to appoint or suspend the Chief Imam.

He also maintained that the allegations against the Imam has no footing in Islamic jurisprudence to form a basis for suspending an Imam, adding that doing so during the holy month of Ramadhan was the worst from the Chiefs.

"We, the Chief Imam of Oke Ona, Alhaji Musliudeen Nasirudeen, Chief Imam of Gbagura, Prof Kamaldeen Balogun and the Chief Imam of Owu, Alhaji Kehinde Suliaman on behalf on behalf of all Egba Muslims hereby pass a vote of confidence on the Chief Imam of Egbaland, Alhaji Sa’adaLlah  Bamgbola as the only custodian of Islamic religion in Egbaland.

The clerics however announced the suspension of the Egba Chiefs who took part in the suspension of the Imam.

"We hereby affirm and confirm that those who have suspended the Chief Imam are hereby suspended themselves.

"They are: Baba Adinni, Navy Captain Rasheed Raji; Chief Abdulquadri Orunsolu; Seriki Egba, Chief Ibrahim Abudulateef Ayoola; Baba Isale Egba, Alhaji Usman Akanbi and Bada Egbaland, Chief Sherifdeen Ogunrinola; the Olori Ratibi, Sheikh Daud Durojaiye Afuape.

"Because they have done this without taking us along that is why we are dissociating ourselves from their decision and they are hereby suspended until further notice," the clerics said.