Religion

By Uzair Adam Imam

The Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufa’i, expressed concern over the way some politicians were using religion and ethnicity to create division in their campaigns.

The governor also stressed on the need to punish policians using religion in their political campaigns.

He spoke at the commissioning ceremony of the head office of the Sultan Foundation for Peace and Development held in Kaduna.

He stated that the 2023 election would be a golden opportunity for Nigerians to take region out of politics.

He said the 2023 elections presented a unique opportunity for Nigerians to take religion out of politics.

El-Rufa’i was qouted to have said, “People are united in their poverty, in their need for education, in decent healthcare and to put food on their table, that is what we should focus on but some people are holding meetings to promote religious and ethnic division.

That is the last thing Nigeria needs at a time when the whole world is facing challenges of ultra-nationalism and global supply chain disruption.”

He then asked for forgiveness, saying, “We try to do what is right but only God is right, my apologies to anyone that I have offended, we have five months to go and I will like to leave and sleep in peace.”

By Abdulhamid Muhammad

Sunday, 25th December 2022, was a day of revelations and feedback from the Waqf Ambassadors of the Zakah and Waqf Foundation, Gombe, Nigeria. It happened during the Uncovering Potentials Workshop (UPW) organized by the Foundation for the 1st and 2nd sets of its Waqf Ambassadors, which was facilitated by Dr Najeeb A.A. Gambo, a researcher with the Microsoft Company and Nigeria’s 2nd Google Certified Trainer.

It was conducted a day after a 2-day intensive induction training for the 2022/23 Waqf Ambassadors at the Foundation’s Training Room. As usual, of all the year-long life-changing training that the Foundation organizes monthly for its 80 enrolled Waqf Ambassadors annually, the UPW was highly impactful, thought-provoking and action-triggering.

In the closing session of the workshop, scores of youth voluntarily gave their testimonies on how the sessions of the workshops they have gone through in the last 12 months have completely revolutionized the way they look at the world financially and intellectually.

One of the ambassadors narrated how excited she was after starting a business and discovering that she could now do a lot of things with her earned income without asking or waiting for someone to give her. It was a great discovery because she grew up in a society that programmed her to think that she could not make money for herself.

Another person said that it was a workshop in ZAWFOG on reading culture that ignited in him the habit of reading books, and that has completely transformed his life, making him more creative and more confident, and hopeful about life.

Another Ambassador, whose parents hitherto paid all his bills, revealed how as a result of the motivation he got from these series of lectures is now able to earn more than the national minimum wage every month despite being still a student. And many of the participants went on and on.

These are a few of the testimonies, and I wished the Chairman of the Foundation, Ameer Abdullahi Abubakar, was there at the closing session to hear how the Foundation is making an impact and transforming lives. It is clear that his model is working; the Waqf Ambassadors are fast moving from poverty (p) to prosperity (p) and soon to philanthropy (p) in sha Allah. As envisioned by the founders of the Foundation, we will soon have a generation of youth who are rich enough and committed seriously to building our society through Waqf.

May Allah accept this from all the people who have contributed in one way or the other in moulding the next generation to be a productive one, amin. May He continue to bless the Foundation and take it to greater heights.

Abdulhamid Muhammad is a 2021 Waqf Ambassador and wrote from Gombe State, Nigeria.

By Ibrahim Mukhtar

The main aim behind the establishment of the famous School for Arabic Studies (SAS) Kano was solely to promote Shari’ah after the conquest of Northern Nigeria by the colonialists.

This was disclosed by Professor TIjjani Naniya of the History Department, Bayero University, Kano, during the SAS day celebrations, which marks the 82nd anniversary of the school.

The History professor went down the history lane and narrated how the school was established and how the then-colonial government wanted to undermine Shariah by promoting their own legal system.

According to the professor, “Sarki Alhaji, who was the first emir of Kano to have performed Hajj, was the one who applied and sought the approval of the colonial masters to establish a school which would cater for the peculiar legal needs of the Northern Muslims.

The colonial masters thought it would be another way to distort and dominate the Islamic legal system, but unknown to them, the School for Arabic Studies would outshine them and their mischief.”

Prof. Naniya narrated how the school admitted only brilliant students based on merit and how a son of a late business tycoon in Kano was expelled as a result of his bad attitude then.

He further talked at length about how the story of the school went high and how the model was copied and established in other states in Nigeria and beyond. Finally, he urged all the attendees to pray for those emirs and leaders who worked very hard to promote Islam and Shariah for all the country to benefit.

The 82nd anniversary took place Monday, December 26, 2022, on the school premises. The event was well-attended by the alumni of the school and other dignitaries.

By Babayo Sule, PhD

The 2022 Qatar FIFA World Cup is no doubt a beginning of a fresh era in intercultural relationships globally because of the indelible marks of perception, dynamism, fresh vigours, advancement of a new model and, most importantly, the introduction of a new style of reception, fanfare and farewell from the host to the world. Hosting a gargantuan event like FIFA World Cup is certainly a herculean task that financial muscles and political influence alone cannot earn. It takes beyond the lobby, indefatigable consultations, display of economic prowess, commitment, smart strategies that will outsmart competitors and, above that, a clandestine promise of delivery and reliability. Of course, Qatar surmounted all these obstacles and won the hosting. Beyond that, the World Cup was successfully organised, hosted, done and dusted most sublimely and fashionably way to some groups, perhaps.

Not long ago, some Western scholars, including Fukuyama (1996), Huntington (1996) and Lewis (1992), struggled hard to convince the world that the Western ideology, civilisation and system are forever the best and can never be competed with or matched in any circumstances. But for the critical counterattacks of the likes of Sa’id (2005), Harun Yahaya, Nefeily (2002) and some others, the Fukuyama-led cultural clash nearly succeeded in defeating the world to surrender to the almighty West and despair from any form of competition. Fortunately, the Sa’id-led counterattacks made us believe that cultural clash or advancing it is an act of ignorance that can be suppressed with dialogue and better understanding built on tolerance and respect. The approach of Qatar to the 2022 FIFA World Cup practically convinced us to discard the former school and hold firm on the latter.

When I learnt that the small country of Qatar, with just a population of 3 million, spent a breath-taking $200 billion, I cautioned myself to wait patiently and see what the country is after because my inner ego told me that the country is definitely up to something otherwise it will be crazy enough to believe this embezzlement amidst the myriads of squalor, deprivation, abject penury, natural disasters and other sufferings emanating from armed conflicts in the Muslim-dominated states. Qatar should have diverted this huge amount of money for humanitarian intervention in the most affected states, but my curiosity continues to deter me from concluding without seeing the actual intention. At last, it is revealed glowingly most passionately and soothingly to the global Ummah that Qatar invested in a modern and strategic Jihad.

Football is arguably the most unifying festival or even phenomenon globally, more than anything. Even religion today is not hypnotising like football, especially among youth. Take Nigeria, for example. Divisions are sharp and threatening to national unity in virtually all matters, even that of critical national importance like security, except for football. In an employment to strategic parastatals or apportion of a political position, no section of the country will tolerate the composition and the outlook of the national team, the darling Super Eagles. But in football, Ahmed Musa can score against Argentina in the World Cup, celebrate by prostrating before Allah (SWT), one of the major pillars of five congregational daily prayers and a major point of bringing one closer to his Creator, the Hausa/Fulani, Igbos, Yorubas, all the more than 400 ethnic groups, the Muslims, Christians, ritualists, animists and the North and South will unanimously celebrate the goal without minding exactly the mode and pattern of the celebration of the player. The same thing is applicable if a Christian player scores and celebrates using his religious signals and symbols. But for football, what can be tolerated that way in our mother country? Should a Minister prostrate in front of a national broadcast to celebrate the country and the achievement of his Ministry, trending impending insults among divided Nigerians will take weeks actively?

For Qatar, the small country lured the globe to its culture and way of using football as a tool. The country satisfactorily met all the requirements and fulfilled all the datelines, resources, infrastructures, provisions and all that is needed to host a successful World Cup. On several visits, the FIFA team always expressed its satisfaction with the level of preparations and provisions made by Qatar. However, some days before the commencement, Qatar boldly rose its head before the world and declared that it is a country of faith, culture, values and a system that must be respected without any compromise. Alcoholism in the stadiums, gay and other amoral attitudes are banned throughout the event, and any violation will surely attract a sanction according to the laws of Qatar governed by the Shari’ah system. Instantly, the belief that the West has in cultural clashes and the arrogant display of the ethnocentric chauvinism of superiority surfaced.

The Western media pounced on Qatar, and some even threatened to either boycott the event or Qatar must be forced to rescind its decision and guidelines for attending the event. Qatar stood firm and pledged never to compromise its stand on the ground that Qatar respects all cultures, and anywhere the citizens of the country visit, they respect and adhere to the guidelines, principles and laws of the land; then, why should her own be different? In what ways is any culture superior or advanced or super enough to bulldoze and overshadow the host culture? Fortunately, the FIFA President, being honest, frank and fair, supported Qatar fully and chided the West for, according to him, ‘its hypocrisy, intolerance, arrogance and immorality. Instead of the West apologising to the world for its more than 300 years of plunder and arrogance, it is parading tits trademark again’. The Western media, unrelenting, resorted to blackmail that the FIFA officials were bribed to grant Qatar the hosting, and the FIFA is bribed to approve the preparations and accept the conditions of Qatar without any protest.

The West, which mesmerised and dazzled the world with its modern scientific and technological advancement, effervescent skyscrapers, efficient system, and continuous innovation, failed the simple test of tolerance, respect and morality. The moral bankruptcy appears disappointing. Sayyid Qutb earlier berated the West for its handicap in a moral view. He expressed his wonders in seeing the miraculous feat achieved by the West in technology and development but rebuked them for moral emptiness, cultural intolerance, intellectual fallacies of distorting Islamic culture and values to him and bestiality exhibited by humankind in their societies. The FIFA President himself chastised the West for its sheepish behaviour and the display of immorality to the level of bestial nuptiality. The West arrogantly believed that it had the monopoly of setting the agenda for even cultural perception. The long-term monopoly in the political and economic control of the world intoxicated the West to believe that it must always determine the standard for anything, and it must have its way. But Qatar, a small but mighty country, challenged this view and put a sudden stop to it in style.

Qatar designed a Jihad model and unveiled it where all the attentions are. They say, ‘hit them where it hurts’, and Qatar hit where it hurts, but it soothes many. The opening ceremony sent waves of meticulous fantasy and a display of a fabulous enigma of people that aspired to differ in all ramifications from the acclaimed normal norm. Instead of the noisy fanfare, thunderous jamboree and a competition to display nudity and craziness of masquerades, the environment of the opening ceremony was ensconced in a serene clime with the melodious recitations of the Glorious Quran and a lullaby of the romantic Arab scents and marvellous dressing. The spectators silently listened and were hypnotised by the beauty and eloquence of the Qur’anic recitation.  

Instantly, the campaign of calumny, blackmail and propaganda swung into action in the West. The BBC declined to air the opening ceremony. The major Western media embarked on futile and baseless negative reporting. For instance, the Independent of November 21^st 2022, wrote a piece mocking Qatar, the host, titled ‘Qatar World Cup defeat proves there are some things in sport you can’t pay for’. Another article in the Independent in the date titled ‘Qatar’s opening World Cup impression slips into disaster on and off the pitch’.

In another propaganda, CNN reports in an article on 20^th November 2022, ‘Qatar makes World Cup in a debut controversial tournament of firsts’. The 24^th November 2022 article by the Independent titled ‘What on earth is Morgan Freeman doing in Qatar? Queried why Morgan Freeman should be in Qatar. In the assumption of the Western media, Qatar spent lavishly to win. When and where World Cup opening match is won by the host? Morgan Freeman is seen either as too civilised to be in Qatar to attend a Qur’anic opening ceremony or irrelevant. The motive of Qatar is entirely a different ball game. Qatar has won the World Cup in the eyes of the fair-minded, culturally-tolerant but specifically, the Muslim world. The Jihad exhibited a moderate contemporary approach, and the resistance against the imposition of alien cultures to then host succeeded in opening the eyes of the imperialised and the international relations and international system will, of course, never be the same again.

Other resistance to neo-colonialism and new imperialism are unfolding courtesy of what Qatar did. Peacefully but assertively, Qatar altered the shape of the global political economy for keen observers. Even Huntington must revisit his clash of civilisations and rethink the remaking of world order beyond his only perceived clash.

The damages that the West self-inflicted in the effort to spoil the World Cup show in Qatar can take many decades or centuries to restore. For example, they are enlightening the world to resist any culture that it is not comfortable with, starting with their forceful imposition. They may continue to lure and influence the world using economic leverage and threats, but countries that are self-conscious, like Qatar, which internally recycled its economic buoyancy, will resist and counter. African states may take a lesson or continue to be humiliated by the world at will. The West, in its intolerance, informed the world that the crusade for human rights, democratisation and other dangerous exports (Blum, 2013) might be resisted, and it is a setback to its agenda of ruling the world using institutions and agreements.

Another lesson the world learnt from the weird attitude exhibited by the West in Qatar is to draw back and resist any attempt to denigrate or demean any culture, value, faith or nation. It is a scientific gateway for many global policymakers and key players to justify when pushing an agenda or tackling it. The worse of the scenarios is the moral emptiness and sheepish attitude of some countries and their football teams. The sport, as if it were a living organism, showed them an early exit to save the world from their embarrassment and allowed the serious-minded ones to battle it out.

One fascinating scenario in Qatar that will outlive the tournament and qualify the event to be extraordinary is that the vulgarity of Qatar is not leaving any stone unturned in its newly discovered Jihadism. The likes of Dr Zakir Naik were offered the opportunity to display their prowess in Da’awah, and the accommodation was designed to introduce the Islamic process of cleansing from impurity, a discovery that leaves many visitors dazzled and interested in Islamic teaching. The calls to prayer, display of Qur’anic verses from all angles of the city and Prophetic golden words all revealed exactly what Qatar spent its money for and not what the Independent article misperceived or tried to push deliberately. The final or closing ceremony after Argentina won the Cup was exotic. African musicians, including the Nigerian Davido, were invited but were confined to the World Cup tune prepared by a Qatari singer. The best player, Lionel Messi, was decorated in the regalia of the most valuable Arabian dress instead of the obscured juju and the usual spray of liquor and other madness that have no place in most civilisations but are being pushed down the throats of the communities by the imperial powers.

The World Cup has come and gone, but its memory will forever relish our minds and in what Qatar did, ‘Verily, in this is a Sign: but most of them do not believe’ (Q26:8). Qatar has opened a gateway for other world countries to liberate themselves from the encumbrances of new imperialism and neo-colonialism that is used to push the imperialism (Nkrumah, 1965). The small country has presented a fashionable and peaceful model of Da’awah that will strategically counter propaganda and a model of Jihad devoid of terrorism. It is a kind of Jihad that is difficult to provide a vacuum for conspiracy or damaging insults. Qatar may face stereotyping and a campaign of blackmail, and other Arabs and Islamic states may not smell the opportunity of hosting the World Cup for the next century or more, provided the West continues to control the world, but world countries can now develop the effrontery to counter abuse and disrespect of their faiths and cultures and may advance to ward off imperialism. African continent may restore its umbilical cord with Latin America and the Caribbean to re-establish a strong, surviving and successful Pan-Africanism. Qatar, in our eyes, is a blessed land of the righteous that present a model of liberation. God bless the country and the tournament!

Babayo Sule (PhD) wrote from the Department of Political Science, Faculty of Humanities Management and Social Sciences, Federal University Kashere Gombe, Nigeria. He can be reached via babayosule@gmail.com.

By Uzair Adam Imam

The Kano State Hisbah Board Monday said it apprehended 19 youths for same-sex marriage in the state.

The Commander General, Sheikh Harun Muhammad Sani Ibn Sina, confirmed the development to journalists.

Ibn Sina said the youths gathered to witness the wedding of two suspected homosexuals, Abba and Mujahid, at one event centre in the city.

However, he said their personnel arrived at the scene before the commencement of the wedding rites and 15 females, and four males were arrested during the operation.

He added that some of the ladies arrested said they were invited to the wedding from the neighbouring states.

He noted that the duo, tagged as bride and groom, Abba and Mujahid, escaped immediately after the arrival of the Hisbah personnel at the wedding venue.

A 21-year-old lady, Salma Usman, who is now in Hisbah custody, was said to be the event organiser.

Meanwhile, while reiterating that the Hisbah will intensify efforts to ensure the arrest of Abba and Mujahid, Ibn Sina said they would hand over those in their custody to the police for further action.

Some of those arrested who spoke to Radio Nigeria, Salma Usman, Sadiya, Aisha Adam, Maryam Ibrahim and Bilkisu Lukman, claimed to have been invited to a birthday party.

The ladies pleaded for leniency and promised not to engage in such acts.

By Sheikh Aminu Aliyu Gusau.

The story of AbdulJabbar is that of fanaticism. 

It is about the feud between the Izala and Darika in Kano and across the nation. AbdulJabbar’s over-zealousness, eventually, landed him into trouble. He is from the Qadiriyyah Sufi order, whose headquarters is in Kano, just as Kano is one of the headquarters of Tijjaniyyah. Lately, Kano also became one of the headquarters of factional Izala group, specifically the Salafiyyah.

AbdulJabbar grew up in the midst of an ongoing harsh and hot arguments between the scholars of Izala and that of Darikah. Thinking that he is knowledgeable enough to wade in, he dived into the arguments. 

The fundamental aspect of the Izala argument, which secluded the title of “Ahlussunnah” to itself, is basing everything on the Qur’an and Sunnah based on the understanding of the first three generations of Islam. But they put more emphasis on hadith (sayings, actions and approvals of the Messenger of Allah) with a pedagogical approach. To display that he has an unmatched prowess in that kind of knowledge, AbdulJabbar ventured into the altercation head on. 

That coincided with the emergence of Kano as one of the headquarters of the Shi’a sect, (with whatever you come to Kano, you will find someone/something better). The Darikah Ulama are divided into two, pertaining engagements with Shi’a. While many of their scholars are suspicious about them, some have embraced them for their (Shi’a) near similar stand on the status of the progenies of the Messengerof Allah. AbdulJabbar is one of those who were influenced by the doctrines of Shi’a. He started to turn to their books, which contained condemnation of the companions of the Messenger of Allah and rejection of what they reported directly from the Messenger of Allah. When he went to Iraq for studies, he met many adherents of Shi’a and, consequently, became influenced by their stand on the companions of the Prophet and Hadith.

Thence, AbdulJabbar decided to wage a war on Izala in an unprecedented way – through the condemnation and destruction of the entire Sunni school of thought- to which Izala held on tightly and proudly. Prior to this, no scholar have ever tried that. In addition, all the Darikah scholars believe that they are Ahlussunah, they have no problem with the sunnah of the Messenger of Allah (PBUH). Their problems with Izala is only that of definition, meaning or translation. The Izala, too, according to some scholars among them, agrees that yes the Darikah adherents are Ahlussunnah, in a “broader meaning”, while they (Izala) are the specific/real Ahlussunnah. 

Another influence of Shi’a, specifically the Zakzaky faction, on AbdulJabbar, is the “heedless” confrontational approach. He decided to confront Izala in a “heedless” manner similar to the Zakzaky faction of Shi’a. He failed to decipher that Zakzaky faction only display “heedlessness” while confronting the government, but when it comes to the Shi’a doctrine, specifically on the companions of the Prophet, they apply the  “Taqiyyah”. AbdulJabbar didn’t learn the wisdom behind Taqiyyah, because he thinks that if if he didn’t disrobe himself from the Sunnah he can’t say anything (to suppress Izala) when it comes to “knowledge driven discussions.”

He started by insisting that most of the Ibadat undertaken by Izala were not based on the Sunnah of the Prophet but based on innovations from his companions. He, then started discussing the “innovations of the Sahaba”, giving more emphasis on the second CalIph, Umar. This exposed how deep he was influenced by the Shi’a. He spent time discussing “the fifty innovations” that were smuggled into Islam by Umar.

The fundamental thing that AbdulJabbar failed to realize, when he started his “heedless” sojourn, was that he was invalidating the whole jurisprudence that were in practice by every Muslim who was not a Shiite. He failed to understand that he was, indeed, attacking every Muslim.

When he started this, the scholars at his home quickly realized where he was heading and the danger that lies ahead if their family is to be identified with what he was spewing. Therefore, they tried to stop him, an action that resulted in bitter disagreements between them. Consequently, he parted ways with them and started his own group for his kind of Da’awa.

The advent of Google search engine gave AbdulJabbar quick access to some writings by atheists, Muslim heretics and orientalists from the Christian scholars who satirize the Prophet and his companions. This emboldened him over his attack on Sunnah.

He immediately embarked into the process of invalidating Hadiths. His most important targets were Sahih Bukhari and Sahih Muslim, to be followed by the rest of Hadith books. His method was to establish that it was the companions who deliberately concocted  those Hadiths in order to destroy Islam after the Prophet. The Prophet didn’t utter those Hadiths. He insisted that those who reported the Hadiths knew that they were lies, concocted by the companions, but they chose to conceal the truth for over a thousand years! This is exactly the stand of Shi’a on the Hadith believed by Ahlussunnah.

To prove that the companions were against the Prophet and that they were trying to destroy his religion, AbdulJabbar decided to quote the utterances of Shi’a scholars, heretics and that of the atheists, (everything said by AbdulJabbar on this subject was copied from elsewhere, he was not the one who discovered or hypothesized them, as he boastfully claims), that asserts that the companions have disrespected and ridiculed the Prophet, or that they (the companions) have invented some things into Islam that could never have been from the Prophet (PBUH).

This is what the scholars termed as challenging the “Dirayah” (the part of knowledge that ascertain whether or not the import or meaning of a hadith is in concurrence with the shari’ah) instead of challenging the Hadith from the angle of its authenticity or not, through observing the chain of reporters (Riwayah). 

AbdulJabbar used both approaches, but he took an opposing stand to that of the scholars of Hadith’s principles that “a hadith couldn’t be faulted on the basis of the companion who reported it, because all the companions are deemed trustworthy and honest (specifically when reporting what the Prophet said)”. He, instead, selected the stand of Shi’a that asserted that the fault of a companion is also the fault of any hadith from him, notwithstanding who followed in the chain of the narrators.

Muslims in this country have been reading these books and other commentaries on them from the day Islam came into this country, they’ve never heard anyone interpreting them with such bizarre meanings as did AbdulJabbar. But he kept misinterpreting them – as the Judge said in his rulings – “without showing or pointing the exact words in the books, and it was not an interpretation with meaning (which is lawful) but that -as he (AbdulJabbar) claimed- it was an interpretation with a “Shubhul “Ma’na.” 

Therefore, to all Muslims in this country, with the exception of the Shi’a, AbdulJabbar’s failure to point the exact offensive words he alleged were uttered by the companions, meant that those reprehensible words were his, and he is the one who invented those words against the Prophet (PBUH). This ignoble act, prompted all the Muslims in Kano that bear the name of Ahlussunnah, even if it is the “broader meaning” of Ahlussunnah, to merge in order to fight this menace which is simply Shiism in the garb of Sunnah.

The merger scholars were victorious in pressuring the government to prosecute AbdulJabbar. The judge sentenced him according to the Malikiyya school of thought, using the verdict from “As-shifa”, a book made famous by the family of AbdulJabbar for reading it always in public. It was disclosed that the stand of Imam Malik is that “anyone who report offensive comments on the person of the Messenger of Allah, and eventually failed to prove it, will be deemed as the one making the offensive statement, and is liable to be sentenced to death.”

When AbdulJabbar came out “heedlessly” to proselytize Shiism using the garb of Sunnah, in order to suppress Izala, he was oblivious of this statement from “As-shifa”. Eventually, the verdicts of the book have consumed him. He had also forgotten that, by so doing he will be fighting every segment of the Muslims who are not Shi’a. Now the merger has consumed him. He had also forgotten that though it is said that in this country everyone can say whatever he likes, due to Freedom of Speech, the shariah law is exercised in Kano. Now he is consumed by Shariah. 

Overzealousness in sectarianism should be avoided by all, please. 

Translated by Muhammad Mahmud.

By Ahmad Deedat Zakari

An Upper Shariah Court sitting at Kano has sentenced the controversial Kano Islamic cleric, Sheikh Abduljabbar Nasiru-Kabara, to death for blasphemy.

Delivering the much-anticipated judgement on Thursday, the presiding judge, Ibrahim Yola, declared the defendant guilty and hereby sentenced him to death by hanging.

The embattled cleric was charged to court by the Kano State Government after making comments deemed blasphemous to the personality of Prophet Muhammad (SAW).

Before delivering the judgement, the presiding judge said he was convinced that the prosecution did their part and had proven their case beyond a reasonable doubt.

He said: “I am convinced that the prosecution counsel has done their part and proven their points beyond a reasonable doubt.”

Before the conviction of the defendant, the embattled cleric had disowned his lawyer, Aminu Abubakar, in court and interjected his plea for mercy. Mr Abubakar had opined the cleric acted in ignorance.

Abduljabbar Nasiru-Kabara stated that he did not know the lawyer nor needed the court’s mercy. He added that he would die a hero.

The Daily Reality learnt that Abduljabbar was quoted as saying: “I don’t know him. This is the first time I am seeing him. He should not be allowed to speak on my behalf. I can and should be allowed to speak for myself,” he said.

Speaking further, Abduljabbar said: “My lord, after I heard how you twisted all my evidence, you turned around all my submissions upside down, you have assigned words to me that I have never uttered.

“Deliver your judgement, and I am not asking for leniency at all. I want all my followers to know that I will die a hero, and I don’t want you (the Judge) Ibrahim Sarki Yola to do me any favour or grant me leniency. This is my last word. Assalamu Alaikum.”

By Uzair Adam Imam

The case of Sheikh Abduljabbar Nasiru Kabara, a famous Kano-based controversial cleric, accused of defamation, has continued to attract a great deal of public attention.

The entire Kano population is eagerly waiting to see what the court will decide on the fate of the embattled sheikh on Thursday, December 15, 2022.

However, while the court decision on the case remains unpredictable, the two parties, Kabara and the Kano State Coalition of Ulama, wish to win the case.

On July 10, 2021, Kano State Government organised a debate between Kabara and some of the state’s scholars to defend himself over what the Ulama Coalition described as blasphemy.

However, according to the statement made by the judge of the debate, Professor Salisu Shehu, Kabara failed to clear his name or defend his utterances.

‘Where Abduljabbar gets it wrong’ – Awaisu Al’arabee Fagge

In several commentaries and reading sessions, the embattled cleric assumes himself more knowledgeable than any other Islamic scholar of his time and history. He also disregards and criticises any view that does not sit well with his belief.

Holding to this belief, Kabara lambasts any legal pronouncement by the prophet’s companions and, worse, defames Prophet Muhammad (SAW) himself in his subsequent preaches, which he falsely attributes to some Islamic scholars. 

However, Kabara’s counterparts in Kano stood up to put an end to his unsavoury teachings and controversies while bringing many books, including rejoinders some of the scholars published.

The Kano State Government also organised a debate between Kabara and some of the state’s scholars, where, as judged, he failed woefully.

Kabara drags to the court after his defeat

Abduljabbar was subsequently arraigned on Friday, July 16, before an Upper Sharia Court Judge, Kofar Kudu, Alkali Ibrahim Sarki Yola, where the charges included blasphemy, incitement, and sundry offences were mentioned.

The development followed the receipt of the First Information Report from the police by the Office of the Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, which prepared charges against the cleric.

However, something dramatic happened at the court as Kabara alleged that his attorney, Dalhatu Shehu Usman, received N2 million as a bribe to influence the Upper Shari’ah court judge presiding over the case.

“My lawyer told me he gave the judge N1.3 million, another person N200,000, and he himself took N500,000,” Kabara alleged.

Thus, the cleric continued to quarrel with his lawyers and laid claims and allegations against them since the beginning of the court sitting.

All this comes to an end tomorrow, Thursday, 15 December 2022.

By Uzair Adam Imam

The Centre for Promotion of Shari’ah (CPS) expressed worries over the utterances of some prominent Christian political and religious leaders concerning the Muslim-Muslim ticket.

The centre was also dismayed by the numerous social, political and economic challenges bedevilling the Muslim Ummah in the country.

This was contained in a communiqué signed by Aminu Inuwa Muhammad, the centre National Coodinator, at the end of a one-day stakeholders meeting in Abuja.

It said, “Current developments in the political landscape of Nigeria have become a source of serious concern to CPS and the general Muslim Ummah in the country.

“The decision of some parties in the choice of presidential candidates and their respective running mates has attracted unguarded statements from some religious and political leaders, a development that has worsened the already tense political situation,” it added.

The centre also called on the Muslims to vote for the political parties and candidates who will ensure justice and protection of their rights and interests.

“Muslims in Nigeria need to properly organise themselves in order to take full advantage of their obvious demographic strength during the 2023 elections.

“Muslims need to pursue proactive measures towards countering the negative profiling in the media as well as the moral drift and mischief prevalent in the social media.”

By Uzair Adam Imam

The Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) has condemned a decision by the Lagos State Office of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to hold its meeting inside a church in Ikeja, Lagos State.

Prof. Ishaq Akintola, the MURIC Director, made the condemnation in a statement released and issued to journalists on Thursday.

It was gathered that the Lagos headquarters of INEC scheduled a meeting for Thursday and picked Archbishop Vining Memorial Church Cathedral, Ikeja, as the venue of the meeting.

Akintola advised INEC Lagos headquarters not to hold any of its activities in any church except those meant for church members alone and that same goes for mosques and shrines.

He added that INEC has no business using places of worship for their activities, adding that the development is ‘very disappointing’.

The statement read, “This is very disappointing. How can an electoral body of INEC status pick a religious house of worship as venue for its meeting? Is the meeting for the Christian wing of INEC or what? Is INEC meeting members of the church? It is unacceptable.

“The choice of a church as venue for a meeting of INEC is very insensitive particularly given the very volatile situation, we are in Nigeria today. It is an open secret that Christian pastors are deeply involved in political campaigns.

“Many of them have turned 2023 election into a straight fight between them and the Muslims.

“INEC Lagos Headquarters has taken a false step. Holding an electoral body’s meeting inside a church is like holding it inside the secretariat of one of the political parties.

“It erodes confidence. It is totally wrong particularly in a situation whereby the church has publicly revealed that it is an interested party in the ongoing electioneering exercises.

“Why pick a church when there are hundreds of neutral places all over Lagos? Is INEC promoting the church’s vested interest in the 2023 election? Is some kind of connivance in the offing?

“INEC Lagos headquarters must prove to Lagosians that their votes will count. We call on Lagosians to watch the activities of INEC from now on because we are not convinced that it is going to be neutral,” Akintola said.