Abubakar Usman Mabera, chairman of Sokoto state Ulama forum of Izala, has said any Muslim lawyer who defends Yahaya Sharif-Aminu, a singer who was convicted over an alleged blasphemy against Prophet Mohammed in Kano state, has renounced Islam.
Sharif-Aminu was sentenced to death by hanging on August 10 after he was found guilty of blasphemy against the Prophet Muhammad.
Read Also: Kano Sharia Court Sentences Musician To Death For Blasphemy Against Prophet Muhammad In Song
The sentence had stirred outcry among many Nigerians who called for an overturn of the judgment.
Despite the public outcry, the Supreme Council for Shari’ah in Nigeria asked Kano state government to execute the court judgment.
In response, Abdullahi Ganduje, governor of Kano, said he would not hesitate to sign Sharif-Aminu’s death warrant if he failed to file an appeal within 30 days.
Read Also: Kano Singer Sentenced To Death For Blasphemy Appeals Judgment
The convict has however appealed against the court’s decision few days to the 30-day grace period.
Speaking over the weekend, Mabera insisted that blasphemy is a capital offence in Islam of which its punishment is death.
He further averred that the death sentence cannot be pardoned since a competent court has found the singer guilty.
Mabera asked Muslim lawyers to be careful in defending the convict, adding that “any lawyer who comes out to defend him has renounced his Islamic faith”.
The cleric also asked Muslim faithful to seek God’s forgiveness because the prevailing setbacks in the country are signs of wrongdoing.
He said;
For all indications, God is not happy with us and we have to repent because he alone is the answer to our woes.
This comes few days after the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) said Sharif-Aminu was not represented by a lawyer during the trial at the Upper Sharia Court and that he has been denied access to any lawyer since his conviction.
n a statement on Thursday, Ernest Nduka, NBA national publicity secretary, said the association has constituted a two-man fact-finding committee to visit the singer.
He said the action was initiated by Olumide Akpata, NBA president, in response to allegations on social media by Nigerians and calls by members of the association that the federal correctional centre, Kano state, denied Sharif-Aminu access to his lawyers.
The committee comprising John Aikpokpo-Martins, NBA first Vice President, and Kunle Edun, its national welfare secretary, was mandated to embark on a fact-finding mission to the correctional centre.
He said the NBA national officers found that Sharif-Aminu was denied access to lawyers because he was not represented by a lawyer during the trial at the Upper Sharia Court.
