Death Sentence Hangs on Kano Singer

…as Council of Imams insists on execution

Yahaya Sharif-Aminu

The  Council of Imams in Kano, has urged  Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje to sign the execution warrant of an Islamic gospel   singer, Yahaya Sharif-Aminu found guilty of blasphemy against the prophet of Islam to serve as a deterrent.



Sharif, a Kano native, was found guilty of blasphemy against the prophet of Islam, a capital offence under Shari’a jurisprudence and was sentenced to death by hanging.

The Sharia system, which also has its own Court of Appeal, handles both civil and criminal matters involving Muslims and its judgements can also be challenged in Nigeria’s secular Courts of Appeal and the Supreme Court.

Sentences handed down by the courts include floggings, amputations and the death penalty.

Although the convict has 30 days to appeal the judgment, chairman of the council, Sheikh Muhammad Nasir Adam, said the government should be courageous enough to adhere to the court judgment, regardless of political sentiments.

Adam, who spoke with journalists in Kano, applauded the dexterity of the court in arriving at the judgment, saying it was in line with the tenets of Islam.

The Islamic scholar explained that Islam is a religion of peace and tranquility, but noted that it specified ways and manners of life.

He cautioned those kicking against the judgment to refrain from any act capable of generating religious intolerance in the country.

“Let me commend the judge for taking the hard but right decision on the judgment because Islam frowns at passing derogatory comments on our prophet. We also want to believe with full confidence that the Kano State government will sign, without hesitation, the execution of the convict. We have firm conviction that the government will sign it so as to serve as an example,” he said.

Also, Chief Imam of Shiekh Mohammad Ja’far Adam Central Mosque, Sabuwar Gandu quarters, Shiekh Abdullahi Gargamawa, urged Ganduje to endorse the execution of Sharif without further delay.

An upper Sharia court in the Hausawa Filin Hockey area of the state found  Yahaya Sharif-Aminu guilty of committing blasphemy for a song he circulated through a WhatsApp social  in March 2020.

The trial Judge, Khadi Muhammad Ali-Kani, said the offence was against the Islamic Law and thereafter sentenced the convict to death by hanging under section 382 (b) of Kano State Sharia Panel Code Law 2000.

In his submission before the court, Sharif-Aminu pleaded guilty to the charge.

Judge Khadi Aliyu Muhammad Kani said he could appeal  the sentence within 30 days.

However, the sentence cannot be carried out without the approval   of the state governor. 

Meanwhile, the family house of the  singer, who has been in detention since March, was burnt by irate muslims who protested the continued circulation of the offending video by WhatsApp users .

The Prosecution Counsel, Inspector Aminu Yar-Goje, had alleged that the convict with the intention to hurt the feelings of Muslim faithful, made a blasphemous post via a WhatsApp group platform named: “Gidan Umma Abiha”.

“The convict made blasphemous and degrading audio remarks against Prophet Muhammad (PBUH),” he said.

States across Northern Nigeria use both secular law and Sharia law, which does not apply to non-Muslims.

Only one of the death sentences passed by Nigeria’s Sharia courts has been carried out since they were reintroduced in 1999.

The last time a Nigerian Sharia court passed a death sentence was in 2016 when Abdulazeez Inyass, was sentenced to death for blasphemy against Islam during after a secret trial in Kano.

He was alleged to have said that Sheikh Ibrahim Niasse, the Senegalese cleric credited with reviving the Tijaniya sect and spreading it across West Africa, “was bigger than Prophet Muhammad”.

In his reaction, the state Chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Adeolu Samuel Adeyemo, who said the Shari’a court judgment was strictly an Islamic affair, called for religious tolerance to ensure  a harmonious atmosphere in the society.

“For us in CAN, the judgment of the Shari’a court is according to Islamic law and so we don’t have objection to it because it is according to the position of Islam’’, he said.

“So, our interference is not relevant. Now, if you want to know the position of Christianity about blasphemy, I will say there is what you can blaspheme about and what you cannot. And the Lord Jesus said blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is a grievous sin that has no forgiveness. That is the position of Christianity,” he said.

Also reacting, the Civil Society Forum in Kano challenged those opposing the judgment of the Shari’a court to explore the appropriate legal means rather than toeing the path of lamentations and threats.

Legal adviser of the forum, Mustapha Idris, said the Nigerian constitution was clear about every court ruling and judgment, adding that the Shari’a court judgment could be challenged at a higher court.

–Segun Fatuase
seguntuase@gmail.com
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