President Muhammadu Buhari, the Sultan of Sokoto, Saád Abubakar, and a
Maiduguri-based Islamic cleric, Sheikh Ibrahim Saleh have been listed
among the world's 50 most influential Muslim leaders.
President Buhari was Number 20 on the list, while the Sultan and Sheikh Saleh are listed as numbers 24 and
38 respectively.
This was contained in 'The Muslim 500,' an annual publication of the World's 500 most influential Muslims.
According to the publication, there are 1.7 billion Muslims in the
world today, making up approximately 23% of the world's population.
The publication measured influence some Muslims have on other Muslims to
include: any person who has the power (be it cultural, ideological,
financial, political or otherwise) to make a change that will have a
significant impact on the Muslim world. The impact could be either
positive or negative, depending on one's point of view.
.
"... the Top 50, are dominated by religious scholars and heads of
state. Their dominant and lasting influence cannot be denied, especially
the rulers, who in many cases also appoint religious scholars to their
respective positions," it said.