MURIC mourns Shaykh Ahmad Lemu

Shaykh Dr. Justice Ahmad Lemu, a foremost Islamic scholar and leader, died yesterday, Thursday, 24th December, 2020. He was 91.

In a statement issued on Friday, 25th December, 2020, the Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) described him as a great scholar and visionary leader. The statement was signed by the director of MURIC, Professor Ishaq Akintola.

“We have every reason to mourn the demise of Shaykh Lemu. He was a great scholar and visionary leader. He was kind, transparent and dedicated to the cause of Islam. He was also a great teacher and a role model. Shaykh Lemu was the founder of the popular Islamic Education Trust (IET) and the Da’wah Coordination Council of Nigeria.

“His carreer as a versatile Islamic scholar saw him serving as Shar’ia judge at the Court of Appeals in Sokoto and Niger states (1976 – 1977) and later as Chief Shar’ia Judge at the Court of Appeals in Niger State (1976 – 1991). He had also contributed his quota to nation building. He was a member of the Nigerian Council of Religions, the Presidential Council for Youth Development and the Presidential Experts Committee for National Security.

“He was an energetic dawah worker. To his credit goes several educational achievements. He founded IET more than fifty years ago when he was the principal of Sokoto Arabic College. He pioneered the writing and publishing of Islamic books which became textbooks in primary and secondary schools.

Today, IET is the largest Islamic center in Nigeria with an Islamic propagation unit, a publishing company, a bookshop, a nursery, primary and secondary school both in Minna and Abuja as well as an Islamic training institute.

Nigerian Muslims will certainly miss Shaykh Lemu as he has left behind a yawning vacuum which may be difficult to fill for a very long time. May Allah grant him unconditional forgiveness, unlimited mercy and unrestricted access to one of the spacious palaces in al-Jannah. May Allah also give the family he left behind the fortitude to bear the loss.