In his keynote address, Alhaji Mohamed Haji-Kella, praised His Majesty King Mohammad VI of Morocco for his tremendous assistance to the government and people of Sierra Leone during our struggling days of the Ebola scourge. He pledged the fullest support of government to support the foundation as the main aim of the foundation is to bring peace to society.
Alhaji Kella, reiterated that Sierra Leone is a very tolerant nation and the people co-exist regardless of their religious, racial or tribal background. He stressed that this has made the country to be one of the most peaceful nations. He maintained that the Holy Quran has laid down principles and general rules of coexistence with all groups and these rules consist of all close behaviors of Muslims with non-Muslims, either personal, familial or social behaviors.
Alhaji Kella, urged participants to continue to support the government by maintaining peace in the nation as the New Direction government of His Excellency President Julius Maada Bio believes in Discipline, Commitment and Competence. He expressed kind sentiments from His Excellency the Vice President Dr. Mohamed Juldeh Jalloh who was unavoidably absent due to pressing state issues and launched the Sierra Leone Chapter of the Mohamed VI Foundation for African Oulema.
Delivering her address, the head of delegation, Atiqa Abdurahman Boutturiya, said that the main purpose of the foundation is to unify and coordinate the efforts of Muslim scholars, in Morocco and other African States, in order to promote, disseminate and consolidate tolerance values enshrined in Islam.
She stressed that the Mohammed VI Foundation for African Oulema is an institution for cooperation, for the exchange of experiences and for the Oulema to make concerted efforts to fulfill their duty and turn a spotlight on the true image of the pristine Islamic faith as well as on its open-minded values.
In his remarks, President of the Mohamed VI Foundation Sierra Leone Chapter, Sheikh Ismaeel Koroma, maintained that the Mohammed VI Foundation for African Oulema aims to take any initiative to integrate religious values of tolerance in Africa, to supervise the intellectual, scientific and cultural activities related to the Muslim religion, consolidate historic relations linking Morocco to the other African states and to ensure their development.
He said that they will work towards the establishment of centers and religious institutions, the scientific and cultural revitalization of the African common Islamic cultural heritage, raising awareness about it and working for its conservation, in addition to establishing cooperative relationships with associations and bodies pursuing the same objectives.
