Is this the begining of the end of the relationship between Imam Fatty and
Jammeh?

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Fresh Standoff Over Veil, Imbroglio State House Imam Confronts Jammeh

http://allafrica.com/stories/printable/200308080588.html

The Independent (Banjul)
DOCUMENT
August 8, 2003
Posted to the web August 8, 2003
Banjul

Imam Abdoulie Fatty has reinforced his reputation for brave and abrasive
frankness by publicly declaring that President Jammeh has incurred God's
wrath for causing more controversy than sanity around the thorny debate to
allow or disallow the veil in Gambian schools.

In the second part of his sermon (Khutba) last Friday that has caused the
nation to hold its breath in disbelief over his unprecedented audacity to
empty his chest, the State House Imam minced no words as he warned the
president over the consequence of his latest action, saying "Allah will
judge between you and the students who wear the veil and they will be
victorious while you will be cursed in hell".

As Imam Fatty got into the essence of his second Khutba almost all
worshippers in and around the State House mosque burst into tears as they
became overwhelmed with emotions aroused by his preaching oratorical
fervour. His audience hang onto his every word with incantations of "Allah
hu Akbar" (God is Great) renting the still air around State House. We
reproduce hereunder, the second part of the Imam's sermon, unmistakably
directed personally at the president who was not in attendance.

"Praise be to Allah. We praise him. We believe that there is no God but
Allah without associate. We believe that Muhammad is his slave and
Messenger. We send prayers upon our beloved prophet, his household, his
companions and all those who follow them in action or deeds until the day
of reckoning.

Mr. President, as Muslims and believers for that matter, we should be kind
to each other in making people realise the truth about the rulings of Allah
the Almighty. As a learned scholar, it is a duty, a compulsion and a force
on me to preach the word of Allah thereby making people know the truth. It
is a duty on me to be kind to those who have misunderstood the words of
Allah by telling them the right thing that will please Allah. If I fail to
do that, Allah the Almighty will punish me for that in the day of
reckoning.

Mr. President, Allah sent Prophet Musa to Pharaoh to convey to him the
uncompromising words of Allah. Pharaoh was very powerful by worldly
standards and was among the strongest disbelievers, but that did not bring
any fear in Musa who spoke to him in kind words to save him from Allah's
wrath. So Mr. President, I will also speak to you in kindness.

Mr. President, it is Allah who said in the Holy Quran: "O Prophet, tell
your wives and your daughters and the believing women to draw their veils
all around their persons when they go out, so that they may be recognised
and not molested. Allah is forgiving and merciful." The meaning of Hijab is
a requirement of the Islamic religion and every Muslim female must do it.
It is a commandment of Allah, which must be respected by any believing
woman. Mr. President, Allah said in the Holy Quran: "It is not befitting
for a believer, man or woman, when a matter has been decided by Allah and
His Apostle, to have any option about their decision. If anyone disobeys
Allah and His Apostle, he is indeed on a clearly wrong path." (Suratul
Ahzab 33:36). Mr. President whoever stands in the way of Muslim females,
preventing them from wearing Hijab has earned the anger of Allah and will
be cursed. Mr. President these Muslim female students are not doing
anything wrong. They are only obeying the Almighty Allah, the Supreme, the
Creator of the Heavens and the Earth and all that is within them. It is
even the constitutional rights of the students to wear veils to school.
This is because the laws of The Gambia guarantee for every person to choose
a religion of their choice and to practice that religion according to the
rulings of the said religion.

Mr. President, you may think that the veiling students are on the wrong
path, but this is not the case. When we all die and return to our Lord, we
will all be brought before him for accountability. Allah will then judge
between you and the veiling students and they the students will be
victorious while you will be cursed. Mr. President on that day, there will
be no soldier around to provide you with security. There will also not be
any minister beside you. The soldiers on that day will be the Angels who do
not know whether one was a president or not. Mr.

President, in the Hereafter there is no prison. The only prison there is
Jahannama (Hell). Also there are no storey buildings there. The only storey
building there is Al-Janna (Heaven). Mr. President, Allah has lent you some
of His powers. You should therefore exercise those powers in accordance
with His will.

Mr. President, the person who informed you that the veiling students would
wear the veils in school and in the streets while at home dress immodestly
is a great liar. That person has not said the truth. Students attending our
schools (Arabic schools) might behave that way. But as for those attending
western schools, I am 100 percent sure that they will not do such an evil
act. This is because no one forced them to wear Hijab. They are doing it
out of their own free will and to please Allah.

Mr. President, the issue of Hijab should not have been a problem between
Islam and Christianity if Christians truly believe in the content of their
book. In the Bible, there is the veil. Corinthians chapter 11, verse 5
orders women to wear veil. But whenever we are discussing the Hijab issue
with the Christians, they turn their backs to the commandment of their book
and keep emphasising on the importance of school rules. Mr. President, they
want us to neglect the Holy Quran.

That is something we cannot do. Allah said in the Holy Quran: "The Jews and
the Christians will never stop fighting you until you leave your religion
and join theirs."

Mr. President, a similar problem happened some years back when these same
mission schools refused to allow the teaching of Islamic studies in their
schools. Mr. M.C Cham played a very important role in bringing that problem
to an end. He ordered that mission schools either allow the teaching of
Islamic studies or uproot their schools from Gambian soil, which is
predominantly Muslim. That step taken by M.C Cham closed the chapter for
that problem.

Mr. President, there is no compulsion in religion. This verse is clearly
understood by Muslims. You will never see a Muslim forcing a non-believer
to become a Muslim. It is the ahlul kitab (Jews and Christians) who need to
understand this verse. Muslim children have been silent over this and cause
no noise. We've been patient for quite a long time. Muslims have been
oppressed and suppressed on many occasions. Our heads are always trampled
down. If you stamp your feet on somebody's hand, the person will of course
make effort to secure his hand. If the person continues to suffer without
any redress, he has to react. Those Muslims who can't endure the
persecution and acts of hostility, end up tarnishing the image of Islam.

Muslims have been blackmailed all over the world for no just reason.

Most of the atrocities that happened in this world are not as a result of
the action of Muslims. Millions of people have been killed in the World
Wars. This was not done by Muslims, so they are not talking about it.
Millions of innocent Muslims have been killed in Kosovo. This was not done
by Muslims, so they are not talking about it. The nonsense wars in Liberia,
Sierra Leone, Guinea Bissau and Ivory Coast were not as a result of the
actions of Muslims, so they are not talking about them.

The problems caused by the IRA are not a concern to them, because no Muslim
is involved. So they are not talking about it. Mr. President Islam cannot
be compared to any other religion. The only true religion recognised in the
sight of Allah is Islam. All prophets of Allah preached no religion other
than Islam. Mr. President, you have made the Kafirs (disbelievers) triumph
over the Muslims. You have made Muslims the laughing stock of the
disbelievers.

Nowadays, any Muslim who exhibits his/her status of being a Muslim is
termed a terrorist. The moment you dress like a Muslim, you are an enemy to
the Kafirs. Muslims should distinguish between their ways of doing things
and their appearance from that of Jesus and the Christians.

Mr. President, marrying many wives and leaving the men to grow long beards
are part and parcel of the Islamic religion. Anybody who did them will have
a great reward and anybody who shuns them will be punished by Allah. Those
who have long beards are continuously provoked by hypocrites and
disbelievers. Those who provoke scorn the beard will be thrown into Hell
fire. Muslims who leave their beards to grow long and the Imams will go to
the best part of Heaven.

Mr. President, you have made the Kafirs (disbelievers) joyous and the
Muslims to mourn. You have made Christianity superior over Islam. And you
have made Muslims cry and Christians laugh.



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