According to a news report from Leadership, Rising inflation in the country is affecting the upkeep of Ilorin Central Jumat Mosque in Kwara State.

The secretary of the board of trustees (BoT) of the Mosque, Alhaji Shehu AbdulGafar, disclosed this during a meeting of the board of trustees and stakeholders held at the women’s wing of the Mosque in Ilorin.

“May I say that the cost of maintaining the edifice is increasing due to the growing inflation. The amount needed to support the Mosque and its facilities has skyrocketed. But I believe that as patriots, we can all ensure that enough resources are generated to keep the Mosque glowing to the glory of Allah.

“However, since the mosque has neither any form of investment nor a steady source of income, this gathering has become a necessity for compatriots not only to donate and make pledges but also to get enabling information on the state of the Mosque,” he said.

The BoT secretary, therefore, appealed to the gathering, which had the attorney general of the Federation and minister of justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi, Mal. Yusuf Ali (SAN), former Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Alfa Belgore, Senator Salihu Mustapha and Engr Lanre Sagaya, Professors Yusuf Badmus and Hassan Salihu, IEDPU president, Alhaji AbdulMumin Abdulmalik, amongst other dignitaries in attendance to donate generously to the maintenance of the Mosque.

He reminded them that the Ilorin Central Juma’at Mosque, “ which is one of the most beautiful places of religion in Nigeria and beyond, needed a lot of resources for proper maintenance of its structure.”

AbdulGafar, while thanking the Emir of Ilorin and the custodial of the mosque, Ibrahim Sulu-Gambari, the trustees, stakeholders, the management committee and the central working committee for their support, added that the intervention of the state government on water supply from the public water scheme had relieved the Mosque of its water needs.

He, however, said that “ epileptic power supply remains a great challenge coupled with a hyper bill of over N1 million monthly to the operation and maintenance of the Mosque. This is coupled with the unstable prices of diesel running to N700,000 monthly.”

Earlier, the chairman of the BoT, Justice Alfa Belgore, had said that the meeting was neither for business nor politics, adding that “it involves every Ilorin patriot as it gives us the privilege to know more about the status of the Mosque and grant us an idea of its needs and expectations.

“Our Mosque is a beautiful edifice. This is a fact that cannot be converted. It remains the best in Africa, which is the South of the Sahara. However, the retention of its beauty can not be achieved through mere wishes but with positive actions. We, therefore, need to pull our resources together towards its proper maintenance,” Belgore said.

The senator representing Kwara Central in the Senate, Salihu Mustapha, announced that he would implement N500m worth of projects for the Mosque.