It is no longer news that the 12th Chief Imam of Ilorin, Sheikh Muhammad Bashir Saliu is dead.
He passed away on Monday, January 19, 2026, at the age of 75.
Sheikh Bashir Saliu had served as Chief Imam of Ilorin since 1983 and many had gotten used to seeing him as the spiritual head of the town and seemingly considered it as a permanent position.
Sheikh Bashir Saliu, Chief Imam of Ilorin, late
It was in semblance with that of Queen Elizabeth II who spent 70 years and 214 days on the throne and made many to assume that it is women that rule the United Kingdom.
While many are eager and looking forward to seeing who will step into the big shoes, it has been a case of ‘studied silence’ as no principal stakeholder in Ilorin Emirate has commented on the issue.
The buck stops with the Emir of Ilorin, His Eminence, Alhaji Ibrahim Gambari and many are waiting for the announcement of the new Chief Imam.
Sources told Global Excellence that it is an ‘intentional silence’ while necessary steps are being taken without making it public.
Meanwhile, succession to the post of Chief Imam of Ilorin is open to candidates from the Fulani quarters, a scholar who must be an Ilorin indigene.
According to a documented account by an Ilorin indigene who is conversant with the history, the death of Imam Bashir Bin Soliu, the Chief Imam, Ilorin has thrown all up sort of questions and permutations as regards the process and requirements of chosen another Imam.
‘Ilorin: the Journey so Far’, written by Alhaji LAK Jimoh, provides insights into the origin and position of the principal Imams in Ilorin.
Chapter 18 of the book reads: “according to a census conducted in 1980 for the launching of Ilorin Local Government’s Chapter of the Kwara State Industrial Development Fund, there were about 600 main mosques and more than a thousand smaller ones within the city of Ilorin. The number increased astronomically over the years. Each Mosque has its own Imam. There were more than ten Jumaat mosques within the city by 1992. Thereafter, the number increased with an amazing rapidity. The Ilorin Central Jumaat Mosque which the Emir attends is the premier mosque.
