Followers of popular Kano State Islamic cleric, Sheikh Kabara Abduljabbar, have alleged that the state Governor Abdullahi Ganduje, influenced the recent Shari’a Court judgement which condemned their leader to death.
Abduljabbar’s followers under the auspices of As’habul Kahfi Warraqeem, Bauchi State Chapter, described the judgement as “un-Islamic and negatively manipulated from the beginning to the end.”
They alleged that Ganduje “ganged up” with some clerics in the state and labelled false allegations of blasphemy against Abduljabbar in order to have a basis to “eliminate him through the court.”
The group made these allegations during a press conference held at the NUJ Secretariat, Bauchi on Monday describing it as a “satanic gang up.”
The Public Relations Officer of the group, Abdullahi Musa, read the text on behalf of the Chairman, Musa Santuraki, entitled ‘Text of Press Conference by the Religious Organisation, As’habul Kahfi Warraqeem, Bauchi State Chapter, on the satanic gang up and the Kano State Shariah Court judgement on our spiritual leader, Sheikh Abduljabbar Nasiru Kabara’.
According to the group, the blasphemy allegation against their leader was a deliberate campaign of calumny and character assassination because “they” felt threatened by his popularity.
They also said that the judgement was politically processed by Governor Ganduje because Abduljabbar was critical of his corruption.
While vowing to appeal the judgement, they said, “First of all, we are not satisfied with the judgment, because we believe it was influenced by the Kano State Governor, Abdullahi Ganduje and some clerics in the state who are known to be at loggerheads with him for a long time. They therefore ganged up against him and labeled false allegations of blasphemy against him in order to smear him and eliminate him through the court.
“The allegation of blasphemy against the Sheikh is nothing but campaign of calumny and character assassination on the popular cleric by his detractors including Ganduje and some clerics who feel threatened by Abduljabbari’s increasing popularity.
“Thus, they purported an allegation of blasphemy to give him a bad name and have justification for their evil plan to terminate his life.
“We have resolved to appeal against the judgment in a higher court of law to quash this unsatisfactory judgment and impose his fundamental human rights especially of freedom of religion and thought as enshrined in the Nigerian Constitution.
“Kano State Government and the hostile clerics to Abduljabbar have teamed up to terminate his life for the offence he has been pleading not guilty. He and we don’t have the strength to protect him in the court alone, hence our call for legal aid from human rights individuals and organisations to bring us succour.
“We notice that some of the sects who now ganged up to eliminate Abduljabbar were the ones who committed a series of blasphemies in their preaching but nothing was done to them and they continue to practice their religion without hindrance.
“These blasphemers include Qaribu Kabara, Abdulrazak Yahya Haifan, Abbas Jega, Jalo Jalingo, Ahmad Gumi, Abdulwahab Abdullah and Sani Rijiyar Lemo, but because they are close to people in power, they went scot free while our spiritual leader who is innocent is now facing persecution.
“The judgment was politically processed by Governor Ganduje, because he was critical of Governor Ganduje’s corruption and he did not support him.
“Finally, the purported un-Islamic so-called judgment by Ibrahim Sarki Yola is totally wrong and un-Islamic, therefore we reject it because the judgment was negatively manipulated from the beginning to the end,” they alleged.
The religious organisation called on the National Human Rights Commission, Amnesty International, national and international human rights organisations and human rights lawyers and others to join them “counter this unfair and unjustified gang up against our religious leader by providing legal aid to the Sheikh Abduljabbar.”
Credit: Punch