Condemnations have trailed the actions of residents of Kasuwan-Garba town in Mariga Local Government Area (LGA) of Niger State who lynched and burned a woman alive over an alleged blasphemous remark against Prophet Muhammad.
The woman, a food vendor identified as Amaye, was said to have made the alleged blasphemous remarks at her restaurant after a customer jokingly expressed interest in marrying her, citing the tradition of the Prophet.
It was gathered that the woman was first taken to the palace of the district head of Kasuwan-Garba, who then handed her over to security operatives for investigation.
Reports said that subsequently, a mob overwhelmed the security operatives and lynched her. The incident happened on Saturday evening.
We Will Arrest, Prosecute the Culprits – Police
The Niger State Police Command has confirmed the incident, saying it has commenced probe into the matter.
In a statement issued in Minna yesterday the Command’s Public Relations Officer, Wasiu Abiodun, condemned jungle justice and said efforts were underway to identify, arrest, and prosecute all those involved in the crime.
A joke that turned grave
It was gathered that the lady engaged in a conversation with some men at her food stand over the issue of polygamy as permitted in Islam. The situation became tense as the lady maintained a position allegedly averse to Islamic injunctions.
A villager, Zakari Mohammed, told LEADERSHIP that Amaye remained resolute in her stance even in the presence of the village head when she was taken there.
Another villager, who preferred anonymity, said: “What started like a joke on the marriage issue — as the lady said she would not marry based on certain provisions of Islam in polygamy — got tense.”
The villager said that amid the tension, which stemmed from the lady’s firm position and the reaction of some villagers, the village head invited the police.
It was learnt that while the police were about to take her away for safe custody, some of the villagers attacked her and set her ablaze.
Consequently, the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) in the 19 northern states has vehemently condemned the brutal killing of the female food vendor, Amaye, in Niger State.
The woman was stoned to death by a mob of angry youths over an alleged blasphemous statement against Prophet Muhammad.
Northern CAN chairman, Rev. John Hayab, in an exclusive interview with LEADERSHIP, described the act as dastardly and disgraceful.
He called on the Niger State government to immediately arrest and prosecute the perpetrators.
Hayab blamed both the failure of the justice system and religious leaders for allowing such evil acts to persist.
“These people must be found and arrested. The government of Niger State must insist that the commissioner of police produce those who did this evil. Then, let the people see that these people have been taken to court and justice has been done, so that in the future, if anyone is invited to participate in such evil, he will run away because he knows the implications. But we have really never done that. In all that has happened in different parts of Nigeria, we play games and talk about it,” he said.
He underscored the shared humanity of all Nigerians.
“At least here, they will not be saying that it is because she is a Christian; even if she is a Muslim, she is a human being.
“We cannot allow our citizens to go through this kind of terrible, inhuman treatment from each other because some people are trying to be fanatical, to show other people that they love God more than others. All of us love God,” He said.
The clergyman pointed out that the recurring issue is a serious indictment of all religious leaders who have failed to properly teach their followers that killing is wrong.
Rev. Hayab went on: “People cannot just take things into their own hands and every day kill fellow human beings and hide under the guise of blasphemy. It is also an indictment of our government.
Because those who keep killing people, hiding under the allegation of blasphemy against the Prophet, have really never been arrested or brought to justice.”
He challenged the legal basis for such killings, asking: “Where in our law is it permitted to kill someone because he said something negative about your religion or your identity or your faith or your deity? That should not be allowed in a civilised community.”
The Northern CAN chairman called for a dual approach to solving the problem: religious leaders must teach tolerance, and the government must enforce the law without fear or favour.
“The challenge is now for us as religious leaders to seriously teach our people and show them that this act is itself against our faith, and for the government to act without delay to arrest those who perpetrate this evil,” he said.
He warned against the pressure often applied to free suspects, saying: “Once such people are arrested, the same religious leaders will put pressure on the police, put pressure on either the court or government and ensure that the suspects are released. They are supposed to be brought to justice.”
Hayab appealed for action, insisting that this case must not be like others.
“I think this one should be a case where we take strong action, not just by condemning it, but by going after the perpetrators and ensuring justice is done,” he said.
Niger Community, Religious Leaders Keep Mum
Community and religious leaders have remained silent after a lady called Amaye was set ablaze in Kasuwan-Garba in Mariga Local Government Area of Niger State for alleged blasphemy.
Meanwhile, the community leaders have refused to comment on the development, insisting that the police were handling the case.
The director-general of religious affairs, Niger State, Umar Farouq, who is also the secretary of the Imam Forum, could not be reached.
Also, the state government has not officially reacted to the issue.
The chairman of Mariga Local Government, Abbas Adamu, said the situation was brought under control to prevent it from escalating into further security breaches.
He, however, refused to speak further on the issue.
We Will Arrest, Prosecute the Culprits – Police
Despite the public nature of the extrajudicial killing, the police said they had not arrested any of Amaye’s killers.
The Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) of the Niger State command, Wasiu Abiodun, said: “A report received indicated that one Amaye, a female of Kasuwan-Garba, Mariga LGA, made some comments against the Islamic prophet.
Unfortunately, it led to a mob attack, and she was set ablaze before the reinforcement of the security teams.”
He said efforts are being made to ensure that the suspects are arrested and prosecuted. However, when asked by LEADERSHIP whether they had made any arrests, he said that in such a situation, the perpetrators would not wait to be arrested by the police.
The PPRO said that while no arrest has been made so far, the police are “on top of the situation” and would bring the perpetrators to justice.
