The Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs has urged the Federal Government and the judiciary to ensure fairness in the ongoing prosecution of former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, amid concerns over alleged religious bias.
The NSCIA Secretary-General, Is-haq Oloyede, made the call in a statement, saying recent developments in the public domain had raised questions about whether religious considerations were influencing the case against the former governor.
The council said it had initially refrained from commenting on El-Rufai’s prosecution because it regarded the matter as a normal judicial process.
“The restraint was because the Council hitherto considered the prosecution as a standard judicial process and that the Judiciary has inherent capacity to uphold justice,” Oloyede said.
However, the NSCIA said its position had changed following what it described as disturbing developments surrounding the case.
“Recent developments in the public domain have raised serious concerns that strongly suggest an extraneous involvement of an underlying religious bias against the former Governor,” the statement added.
The council urged the Federal Government and the judiciary to ensure that no religious consideration was allowed to influence the legal process.
It also appealed to Nigerians to avoid inflammatory comments capable of prejudicing the trial or worsening the country’s already fragile security situation.
“Furthermore, the Council appeals to the general public to refrain from incendiary comments that could prejudice the fair trial of Mallam El-Rufai or exacerbate the security situation in our nation,” Oloyede said.
The intervention came days after the Minister of Defence, Christopher Musa, accused El-Rufai of “doing a lot of terrible things in the state”.
Musa made the allegation during an interview with Channels Television on September 4, claiming that the former governor created divisions between the northern and southern parts of Kaduna.
But the allegation has triggered a fresh confrontation between the former governor’s family and the Defence Minister.
El-Rufai’s family has threatened legal action against Musa if he fails to substantiate his claims within seven days.
The NSCIA, meanwhile, maintained that the integrity of the judicial process must be protected and that all parties should avoid actions capable of undermining public confidence in the trial.
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