Nigerian activist Omoloye Sowore on Sunday called for the immediate release of imprisoned Islamic cleric Sheikh Abduljabbar Nasiru Kabara, describing his continued detention as an act of “religious persecution” by authorities in Kano State.
Sowore, who posted the remarks on his verified social media account, said he had planned to visit the cleric in prison but was troubled by the conditions surrounding his incarceration.
“It is heartbreaking and utterly unacceptable that a religious scholar remains behind bars simply because his teachings or interpretations differ from those preferred by those in power in Kano State,” he wrote.
Kano Times recalls that an Upper Shari’a Court sitting in Kano on December 15, 2022, presided over by Malam Ibrahim Sarki-Yola, sentenced Abduljabbar to death by hanging for blasphemy.
The cleric was arraigned by the Kano State Government on a four-count charge bordering on blasphemous comments against Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) on August 10, October 25, and December 20, 2019.
Sowore said the time had come for Nigeria to put an end to actions that suppress dissenting religious views.
“The era of religious persecution in Nigeria must end NOW,” he said, urging federal authorities and rights organisations to intervene.
He added that the prolonged detention of Kabara undermined the country’s commitment to justice and freedom of expression, warning that “no democracy survives when the state decides which religious opinions are permissible.”
