By Muhammed Shaeed
September 13th, 2024
It set the internet abuzz yesterday, the sudden resignation of an Islamic cleric and singer, Alh. Ibrahim Labaeka from Governor Abdulrahman AbdrulRazaq’s led administration. Until his resignation, he served as the Special Assistant to Mallam Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq, on artistes matter for a year and seven months.
It didn’t come with mere parting words, the Islamic singer stated the reason why he could not continue to work with the administration.
In his resignation letter, he stated plainly, “Aside from the fact that I don’t have a specific schedule of duty, circumstances have not availed me the opportunity to perform my responsibilities maximally.”
He went on to state that being in the office without doing anything set him apart from his belief as an Islamic cleric, he said, “Since my appointment is based on public trust, I cannot continue to break that trust by taking a salary for doing nothing. I haven’t been at peace with myself, so I want my salary to be stopped immediately,”
This has generated throngs of reactions on the internet as some have heckled him for taking this long to relinquish the position that hindered him the opportunity to display his expertise. While some praised him for taking a bold step.
Reactions from different quarters.
Basheer Luqman Olarewaju, a public affairs analyst and author reacted to Labaeka’s resignation via his verified Facebook account that he (Labaeka) could not justify the work he had done and the salary received. He said, ” You simply can’t have your cake and eat it too. While the singer’s resignation might have tugged at the heartstrings of many, the truth of the matter is that it didn’t have any real substance or originality. It seemed more like an attempt to gain public sympathy through emotional manipulation.
“If you can’t justify the work you’ve done and the salary you’ve received, then how can you expect people to believe that you’ve been wronged? If you claim to have valuable ideas and proposals that were ignored, why didn’t you share any of them with us?”
Muhammed Bashir AbdulYekeen, a writer and political analyst, while reacting to the resignation opined that it didn’t come to him as a surprise because, for the appointment was a ruse in the first place.
“Alh. Labeaka’s sudden resignation doesn’t come as a surprise to someone like me not because it was expected but because the appointment shouldn’t have happened in the first place.
“The resignation further attests to the fact that my constant criticism of the government’s failures in its primary responsibilities of governance is justified.
“No governor with conscience entrusts such office to a person of Labeaka who possesses no adequate skills or expertise to add value to the governance within the scope of his portfolio and beyond, safe for making unnecessary video clips to create meaningless attention as he has done with his resignation., AbdulYekeen stated.
He, however faulted Alh. Labaeka for his stylish attempt to set the people against the government.
“Two wrongs they say don’t make a right, if the governor was wrong in entrusting an amateur with a mandate, then Labaeka is more wrong by trying to use his resignation to gain public sympathy and pitch the people against his former principal, what moral right does he have to act in such a manner like that? Will he refund all the salaries and emoluments paid within the period of his appointment? Since he confirmed to have been redundant throughout that period. The faults are shared between the governor and himself, but in all of this, I wish Kwarans well.” he concluded.