Reports indicate that theses nine Muslims were arrested in Kano State for eating during Ramadan fasting hours by the Islamic police, known as Hisbah. This development raises serious constitutional and moral questions.
First, fasting is a religious obligation, not a civic law. It is an act of worship between an individual and God. When the state begins to police personal religious devotion, it crosses from governance into coercion. Faith loses its meaning when it is enforced by arrest.
Second, Nigeria is constitutionally a secular state. Secularism does not mean hostility to religion; it means neutrality. The state must not elevate one religious practice above another or compel adherence. If someone is fasting, that should be voluntary. If someone is not fasting, whether due to health, personal conviction, or belonging to another faith, that is equally their right.
Third, health and personal circumstances vary. As a former Muslim myself, I know some people are exempt from fasting in Islam itself - the sick, travelers, pregnant women, the elderly. Who determines a person’s medical condition on the street? Religious policing risks public humiliation and abuse of fundamental rights.
Fourth, freedom of religion also includes freedom from religious enforcement. A Christian cannot be compelled to observe Ramadan. A traditionalist cannot be compelled to comply with Islamic codes. Even among Muslims, matters of devotion should be guided by conscience, not force.
Fifth, introducing or expanding Sharia enforcement in a multi-religious country like Nigeria risks deepening division. Nigeria is religiously diverse - Muslims, Christians, traditional believers, and others coexist. The stability of the nation depends on protecting pluralism, not privileging one legal-religious system over others.
Sixth, state involvement in religious matters, including funding pilgrimages or enforcing fasting, blurs the line between governance and doctrine. Government exists to secure lives, property, justice, infrastructure, and welfare, not to regulate personal worship.
True faith is strongest when chosen freely. Compulsion breeds resentment, not righteousness.
A secular Nigeria protects everyone: It protects Muslims to practice Islam freely. It protects Christians to practice Christianity freely. It protects traditional worshippers. It protects those who choose no religion at all. That balance is what keeps a diverse nation stable.
My stand should not be seeing as attacking a religion, but about defending constitutional freedoms and peaceful coexistence.
Southwest should not go this low, please.
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