The deputy chairperson of Uganda Muslim Supreme Council, Ahmad Wadrif, has been suspended for conducting official business outside council premises.
Last week Wadrif announced that a General Assembly of the Supreme Council would be held on December 1st to elect a successor to Hassan Basajjabalaba who was voted out of the chairperson's post. 16 members of the joint session of the Supreme Council were unhappy with this and lodged a petition with the Mufti of Uganda, Sheikh Ramadhan Mubajje, to suspend Ahmad Wardif.
he joint session, which brings together the Executive Committee of the Supreme Council and the Council of Learned Sheikhs, say Wadrif's offenses date back to June. They claim that on June 26th this year, Wadrif convened an assembly of a section of the Uganda Muslim Supreme Council to force the ousting of the Mufti.
The announcement of the alleged impeachment of the Mufti reportedly caused panic and confusion among the Muslim community.
Now the joint session says Wadrif's intentions in convening the December 1st meeting at Hotel Africana in Kampala are suspect.
Sheikh Mubajje on Thursday announced that Wadrif would be suspended until investigations into his actions are complete.
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The Mufti also called for a special general assembly of the Supreme Council to be held on Friday. He said the meeting would confirm the appointment of Abdu Kadir Balonde as new chairperson of the council and would select and electoral commission to oversee all major Muslim elections.
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Ahad Wadrif said he was not directly informed about his suspension. He said he had acted in good faith and there were no constitutional provisions barring him from convening meetings outside the Supreme Council premises.
Wadrif said a double standard was being used against hm. He pointed out that when Mubajje was elected Mufti, the council that appointed him met outside the Supreme Council office in Old Kampala.
According to Wadrif, suspensions and impeachments are the Mufti's way of gaining total control of the council. He noted that prior to his removal from office and Basajjabalaba's impeachment, the former chairperson of the Supreme Council Ali Adrama was also impeached on unclear grounds.
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