By Khedr Abdel Baki, IOL Correspondent
ABUJA, March 5, 2005 (IslamOnline.net) – The federal court in Port Harcourt, economic capital of Cross River state in south-eastern Nigeria, has ruled against the demolition of a mosque situated inside the Harcourt Port complex.
In a verdict issued on Friday, March 4, the court invalidated a decision by the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) to bring down the Muslim place of worship.
The Muslim workers union and Islamic organizations in Port Harcourt had sued the NPA over its decision to demolish the 14-year mosque.
Refuting NPA claims, they said in a statement on February 24 that the land on which the mosque was built had been applied for and granted in 1991, asserting the construction met all the necessary specifications and standard.
The Muslims also warned that the mosque demolition would affect more than one thousand worshipers.
The controversy first surfaced on February 9 when NPA Managing Director Adebayo Sarumi proposed the demolition after visiting the Port Harcourt complex.
On February 24, a seven-day notice of demolition was served, promoting a legal action by Muslims.
Construction Crisis
“Muslims in eastern Nigeria usually face a serious problem with the construction of mosques and schools,” Hanbali Badmas of the Anpolu mosque in Port Harcourt told IslamOnline.net Saturday, March 5.
“Although Muslims in Port Harcourt number in the thousands there is a persistent problem with building grand mosques.”
He there are only four mosques where Muslims can perform the Friday prayer, each accommodating no more than 50 worshipers.
Port Harcourt is an industrial and commercial center where steel and aluminum products, pressed concrete, glass, tires, paint, footwear, furniture, and cigarettes are manufactured and bicycles and motor vehicles are assembled.
It is also the operational headquarters of the Nigerian petroleum industry.
Muslims make up around 5 percent of the city’s population, estimated at 1,133,400.
Nigeria’s recent census shows that Muslims make up 55 percent of the country’s 133 populations, Christians 40 percent and five percent atheists.
However, other estimates indicated that Muslims make up some 65 percent of the country.
Twelve of Nigeria’s 36 states have gradually applied the provisions of Shari`ah since the return of democracy to the country in 1999, despite the fierce opposition from the federal government.