By Editor
• State government relaxes curfew • HURIWA wants Jibril arrested for incitement
The police have arraigned two suspects, Bilyaminu Aliyu and Aminu Hukunci, over the lynching of Deborah Yakubu, the 200-Level Home Economics student of Shehu Shagari College of Education, Sokoto, on May 12.
Islamic fanatics stoned and lynched the student for alleged blasphemy, after reportedly wresting her out of the school’s security.
The suspects, co-students of the deceased, who were docked at a Sokoto Chief Magistrate’s Court, pleaded not guilty to the crime.
Prosecuting Inspector, Khalil Musa, told the court that investigation was in progress. Leading a team of 34 defence lawyers, Prof. Mansur Ibrahim applied for their bail on liberal terms, citing constitutional provisions and sections of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA).
The trial judge (name withheld) reserved ruling on the bail application and ordered the accused to be remanded at a correctional centre.
Before she was lynched, Deborah was accused of denigrating Islam on her class’ WhatsApp platform and refused to retract her post after she was asked to pull it down.
A violent street protest followed the arrest of suspects. Consequently, Governor Aminu Tambuwal imposed a 24-hour curfew on Sokoto metropolis on Saturday and relaxed it, yesterday, for a dusk-to-dawn.
The Commissioner for Information, Alhaji Isa Bajini-Galadanchi, noted in a statement that relaxation of the curfew followed a briefing by security agencies in the state.
“The review is to enable people to go about their legitimate businesses and other means of livelihood,” he added.
Bajini-Galadanchi quoted Tambuwal as advising residents to maintain peace and warned that government would not condone any breach of the law.
MEANWHILE, Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has tasked the Department of State Services (DSS) to arrest the Chief Imam of Bayero University Kano (BUK), Sheikh Abubakar Jibril, for allegedly inciting Muslims against the Bishop of Sokoto Catholic Diocese, Matthew Hassan-Kukah.
National Coordinator of the civil rights advocacy group, Emmanuel Onwubiko, stated, yesterday, that Jibril was captured in a viral video telling his many Muslim followers to get the home address of Kukah and possibly attack the bishop, if he is the person that sent Deborah to the school where she allegedly blasphemed against Islam.
Hoodlums, on Saturday, torched and vandalised at least two parishes under Kukah.
According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), it took the swift response of security operatives to stop attack on Kukah’s personal residence.