The Banning of Kano Hisbah: Negotiating the Shari'ah in the Political Process

By

Mahmud Mukhtar

mukmahmud@yahoo.com

 Murtala Muhammed Way Kano

Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau continues to attract the attention of most Nigerians partly because his state remains the flagship of the Shari'ah through the various attempts of incorporating its principles that have universal application. He has also become synonymous with good governance and integrity being one of the few governors that have remained committed to their oath office. A recent acknowledgment came from Dr. Patrick Wilmot who confirmed at the Murtala Muhammed Symposium that Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau is the only Governor out of the 36 Governors who is incorruptible and therefore deserves a double hand shake. This according to him was an assessment of his Nigerian colleagues and former students.

Many people are aware that he would not be left alone since his inauguration of the 9000 Hisbah Guides this is because they are indeed a vanguard for the smooth implementation of the Shari'ah which is against the PDP Federal Government's commitment to the destruction of the Shari'ah. As a tactful authority the Federal Government was waiting for the time when the contradictions of the politicians and Shari'ah actors will eventually negotiate themselves out of relevance. This is because of their lack of cohesion and commitment to Islam. These groups have now offered an opportunity for the banning of the Kano State Hisbah Board which is the only body that has a comprehensive law in Nigeria. The political and Shari'ah actors are; the remnants of the Kwankwaso administration who constantly claim that the Shekarau Administration is not implementing punitive aspects of the Shari'ah, a section of the Ulama who also have similar claims to the Kwankwaso group and a section of The Buhari Organization (TBO) who are committed to politically undermining Shekarau so that he does not win in 2007. These three groups are aimed at finishing Shekarau and they always indicate to their patrons that Shekarau is irrelevant hence the institutions he had established could easily be wiped out.

When Governor Ahmed Sani Yarima launched the Shari'ah President Olusegun Obasanjo dismissed it as political Shari'ah and that he was not going to take any punitive action against it despite pressures from powerful Yoruba Christian groups. Many Christian lawyers continued to argue in the press dominated by them that the Shari'ah is illegal. The only newspapers that were close to neutrality were the Weekly Trust and later Daily Trust but even this group was ambivalent as confirmed by Dr. Aliyu Tilde one of its foremost columnists. He noted that even the Weekly Trust was aimed at scaring people away from the Shari'ah. President Olusegun Obasanjo tried to intimidate the "Shari'ah" governors through the National Council of State but former President Alhaji Shehu Shagari and former Head of State General Buhari resisted. The President's top policy advisers most have advised him to wait until the Shari'ah negotiates itself in the political process through the behavior of its actors who are mainly from semi-educated environments and cannot weigh the consequences of their actions.

Many of the Northern Governors joined the "Shari'ah bandwagon" as coined by the Weekly Trust and eventually 12 northern states became "Shari'ah States". All the governors apart from Abdulkadir Kure launched the "Shari'ah" because of pressure. In Kano State there were several show ups by the Kwankwaso administration when the Deputy Governor led raids into hotels and beer parlors and thereafter paid the owners of the alcohol, all in efforts to deceive the people. Kwankwaso's haughtiness, corruption, fraternization with President Olusegun Obasanjo and Kano's turbulent politics led to his defeat at the polls. Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau won the 2003 elections on the platform of the Shari'ah and of all the Northern Governors or "Shari'ah governors" he has the most impressive Islamic pedigree.  He was an active member of various Islamic organizations and other influential NGOs such as Associations of Principals of Secondary Schools where he served as the National President several times and Inuwar Jama'ar Kano the most prestigious NGO in Kano of which he was amongst the founders and still a trustee. He also had a very remarkable civil service career, in which he rose to the highest position of Permanent Secretary and he served in strategic ministries of education, water resources and cabinet office. Shekarau had all the qualities to be a governor; meritorious public service and active civil society participation.

As an astute politician Governor Ahmed Sani Yarima went about implementing the penal aspects of the Shari'ah including the amputation of a thief that generated world wide uproar. The high profile cases of adultery however came first from Sokoto and Katsina States and the accused were all acquitted based on the principles of Shari'ah although the so-called "human rights groups" made so much noise and claimed victory along with their Nigerian modernist Muslim intellectuals. Governor Ahmed Sani Yarima gained the support of almost all Shari'ah and Islamic Associations. Mean while he continued to compromise in his political behavior having known the way to implement the Shari'ah with the cooperation of the police in his state and largesse to some sections of the Ulama. Hence when Shekarau became the governor the attraction was shifted to him. Muslims were anxious whether he was going to give Shari'ah a good or negotiate himself into the political process as the first initiator of the Shari'ah, his cautious and meticulous approach was used against him by a disgruntled section of the Ulama.

At his inauguration Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau informed the citizens of Kano State and the world that:

We shall prove to the whole world that Shari’a is the most suitable legal system for mankind, and it goes beyond caning or amputation of arms. I assure the people of Kano that all Governmental issues and affairs will be treated on the dictates of Allah (SWT) and the teachings of His Prophet Muhammad  (SAW).

 This was indeed a no easy challenge because it requires time and commitment. As a believer in the rule of law the Shekarau Administration enacted laws for the establishment of institutions that would implement the Shari'ah namely Shari'ah Commission, Zakat and Hubusi Commission and Hisbah Board. None of the Shari'ah states had a similar comprehensive Shari'ah program.

Above all, Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau had stated that all the actions of his government shall be based on the dictates of the Shari'ah. This he put into practice through institutional reforms such as budgetary discipline and projects monitoring which have all been abandoned in the state for decades. He also expanded the democratic space through the institutionalization of participatory approach to governance. This was done through the introduction of the constituency project for the first time in Kano State in which members of the State House of Assembly were made to bring up projects for implementation based on consultations with their constituents. Over N1.9 billion has so far been expended for these projects and another N1.7 billion has been earmarked for the year 2006. Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau continues to attract admiration of the generality of the people of Nigeria because of his humility, transparency and accountability. His profile extended beyond the shores of the country because whenever anyone talks about good governance it is Shekarau that comes to mind far beyond the imagination of most Nigerian governors who cannot travel for fear of apprehension. But he has not been immuned from the intrigues and turbulence of Kano politics. Why, did the Obasanjo led Federal Government ban the Kano Hisbah at this time?

There are indeed several reasons for the recent action of the Obasanjo led Federal against the Shekarau led Kano State Government. Since Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau assumed office he had been under intense attack from the remnants of the Kwankwaso administration spare headed by a group of parasitic former university teachers. It should also be noted that the Shekarau administration is the firmest believer in the freedom of expression hence everyday members of the opposition troop to the radio stations to criticize his government sometimes even over stepping the bounds of decorum. He is indeed the most abused governor in Nigeria in his home state and he never raised a finger. All efforts to stir the public against the Shekarau administration by the discredited remnants of the Kwankwaso administration failed but they kept on deceiving their masters in Abuja that they have the support of the people of Kano.

Kwankwaso had also convinced his masters in Abuja that it was not Shekarau who defeated him at the polls but some disgruntled generals many of whom had now fallen out with Shekarau. Hence Kwankwaso and his mentors have now perfected a plan to ensure that 2007 elections in Kano are carried out in "Eastern Nigerian Fashion" whereby the highest bidder determines who wins by pocketing the security agencies. Kwankwaso now boasts of total security control. He has secured the understanding of the security henchman in Abuja. Who also made sure that the Inspector General of Police posts a Zamfara man as the Commissioner of Police. Kwankwaso personally ensured the posting of the state mobile police commander because he helped the PDP in the 2003. The INEC commissioner is also one of their men so by this calculation 2007 is secured! Kwankwaso had also procured 10000 Hisbah uniforms and has given many to his yan daba (brigands) and they use them to harass innocent citizens thereby giving Hisbah a bad name in fact they have seized some motor cycles and sold them. Through this strategy they believe they could destroy the Hisbah. In fact Kwankwaso cronies came out in support of the illegal Federal Government ban of the Hisbah with the aim of provoking the Muslims in Kano so that there would be violence and a state of emergency would be declared. And if this succeeds the Governor would be removed before 2007 and the election would be a work over for them. One of them has even stated in a Freedom Radio interview that Kano is now under yellow card warning signing and they shall ensure it is given the red card.

Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau like any other successful contestant was supported by many groups but some think they are more important than others particularly the politicians and a section of the Ulama. As usual with partisan politics; godfathers are always created by supporters sometimes against their wish. Kano being the most populous state in Nigeria is indeed one of the most difficult states to govern. Those who wanted to destroy the Shekarau Administration from within the ranks of the ANPP began working since the day of the inauguration. They established a network that would spoil Shekarau's relationship with General Buhari at all cost first because Shekarau did not give them seats in the state executive council and later because they were unable to secure the choicest contracts. Every move by the Shekarau administration was regarded as disloyalty to General Buhari especially because he tried to maintain cordial relations with the Federal Government as expected of any disciplined governor. Several conspiracy theories were hatched. As a seasoned and disciplined personality, Shekarau remained cautious and because of his big heart and magnanimity he even sent some of those people that have been hatching against him to National Political Reform Conference thus broadening their contact and exposure. One of them even swore that he shall do everything to jail Shekarau this is the extent of enmity. The group sent in their points woman to the radio and she was the first to open the can of worms she labeled all manner of allegations against the Shekarau Administration. Including the failed fertilizer contract in which the Shekarau administration had taken the contractor to EFCC being the first government to ever do so. The Chairman of the EFCC had cleared Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau in a BBC Hausa Service interview but these treacherous people kept on bad mouthing Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau as confirmed by the interview of their points woman.

Mean while this same group had kept on pressurizing General Buhari to distance himself from the Shari'ah because they want to make him a "national candidate" as confirmed by their leading intellectual. Hence they convinced him not to support the Kano Reformed Traffic Laws and he did not attend the launching of the 500 tricycles and 100 buses purchased by Kano State Government. There was widespread uproar and a newspaper headline celebrated that General Buhari had rejected Kano State Government program although he later stated that he is still a supporter of the Kano State Government. It should be noted that none of the ANPP Governors apart from Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau bothers himself to please the members of TBO whose main task has been to create enemies for General Buhari by harassing the governors claiming that they are disloyal. Most of these governors won their first elections before General Buhari joined the ANPP. Because of this level of destruction there are now theories that this section of TBO were sent in to destroy General Buhari this may not be far from the truth considering their efforts in trying to destroy the Kano State Government all cost. When the refusal of General Buhari to attend the launching of the Kano tricycles failed to bring down the Kano State Government the TBO people did not give up. All these processes were being watched by the Obasanjo led Federal Government that wants to do away with the Shari'ah and the Shekarau Administration is the only stumbling block. The TBO people were doing the right work for them by undermining the Shekarau Administration.

Since when Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau assumed the governorship of Kano the so-called godfathers began planning how to control and deny him any chance of re-contesting in 2007. They began searching for a party chairman who would fight the Governor. The Deputy Governor was also used because they promised to impeach the Governor and install him. Of recent there are even rumors that the Deputy Governor shall resign and become the candidate of the TBO in 2007 along with a former NEPA employee as his deputy. The initial plans to destroy the Shekarau Administration failed and the indolent former caretaker chairman was removed and another appointed. They were also unable to get anyone who is against Shekarau to contest the chairmanship. The indolent former caretaker chairman kept pretending that he is a gubernatorial candidate and a section of the TBO people kept using him and others.

Four contestants emerged for the party chairmanship and the TBO people were undecided on whom to back because none at that time was ready to fight the governor. A compromise was suggested by the members of the State House of Assembly that Muhammad Bello the leading contender be appointed a state commissioner, Danzago who is the political adviser of the governor be the consensus chairman, Ali Datti who has the support of the LG chairmen the largest block be the consensus secretary and Abubakar Babawo be the consensus deputy chairman. Muhammad Bello was appointed a commissioner and General Buhari even attended the swearing ceremony. It should be noted that Danzago had grudges against the commissioner for local government who is the de-facto leader of LGA chairmen and he orchestrated violence against him just before the confirmation of the consensus chairmanship. The LGA chairmen and members of the State House of Assembly suddenly rejected his selection as the consensus candidate and the governor had no choice than to suggest a candidate who is acceptable to the two most important stakeholders. Danzago and the disgruntled TBO people quickly swung into action with their false and malicious propaganda that the governor is planning to place people who are against Buhari and in support of Obasanjo's third term bid this is the extent to which this treacherous people can go to.

A section of the Ulama instigated by some politicians who own a private radio station committed to the destruction of the Shekarau administration had also earlier swung into action. They also think that it was their campaign for Shari'ah and not Allah that made the Shekarau Administration. First one of them resigned from the Hisbah Board because it was not militant enough for him. This resignation made front page headlines in the Daily Trust and the Daily Independent no resignation of any board member had made any similar headlines in Nigeria before, this was because it was a well orchestrated plan to bring down the Shekarau administration. The man who resigned even claimed that the Shekarau administration does not listen to any of the stakeholders in Kano including the politicians in other words his group and the disgruntled section of the TBO are the only stakeholders in Kano. Thereafter his resignation was followed by those of two other members of his group and this was celebrated by the private radio station committed to the destruction of the Shekarau Administration. There are over sixty Ulama in the various Shari'ah organizations in the state and only three resigned yet it was interpreted by the newspapers and the radio station controlled by the TBO that Shekarau Administration is being rejected by the Ulama that make people.

The Shekarau Administration launched the Reformed Traffic Laws and the Hisbah Guides began to encourage its implementation. The Imam who first resigned from the Hisbah Board supported the State Government but the other two preachers who have aligned with the opposition PDP claimed that it was not enough. Mean while Danzago and his TBO patrons continued to instigate the Achaba motor cyclists to fight the government. The Achaba organized several violent demonstrations but the people remained behind the Kano State Government under the leadership of Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau. At the propaganda level the TBO people used their radio station to instigate the people that Mallam Shekarau is against Buhari and in support of Obasanjo there is no single day that they would not stir this propaganda. They also came out with, another propaganda, in their radio station aimed at inciting the people that the governor is not implementing the Shari'ah. From all sides they were committed to nailing the governor they claim to have made.

As a democrat Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau agreed that the ANPP elections be conducted by the ANPP national secretariat and they sent in a committee headed by the Deputy Governor of Borno State. Despite the fact that there were consensus candidates the election was held and Danzago along with another fellow from the TBO contested because their boxes were there since they did not officially withdraw. The election was shown live and there has never been a transparent party election as it in the history of Nigeria. As expected Danzago and his TBO patrons were not satisfied and they went into the air with their propaganda against Mallam Ibrahim. Danzago finally brought out his "masterstroke" as he claimed publicly which was a tape recorded message in which General Buhari supported him against the transparent election. Again they thought this will instigate the people of Kano to turn against Shekarau and it backfired. This has indeed remained a test from Allah for both Shekarau and the TBO. For Shekarau whether he will blinker and turn to these mini-gods or keep faith that they and not Allah can make or unmake anyone and for the TBO people who thought they made him and not Allah whether they would face the truth, stop scheming and allow the people of Kano to have some peace and tranquility.

The disgruntled section of TBO and Danzago continued with the malicious and evil propaganda that Shekarau is in support of Obasanjo's third bid in addition to evil allegation by the proprietors of the private radio committed to the destruction of his administration that he is not implementing the Shari'ah. Earlier the chairman of that radio station and other disgruntled TBO people had sought a court injunction to stop the party election and they were unable because they were not even registered members of the ANPP. In fact they are from Jigawa and Yobe States where their governors are anti-Buhari and they could not withstand them and they are living and causing havoc in Kano because of the liberal disposition of the governor and they keep on instigating people to violence since they have no stake in the peace and tranquility of the state.

The evil propaganda of the disgruntled TBO people that Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau is in support of Obasanjo is the furthest ever from the truth. He is the only northern governor that has made headlines twice against the third term bid but because the disgruntled TBO people are using their private radio station they think the people of Kano have no sense of judgment and hence they are going to believe them. Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau is also the only governor who has held a stakeholders conference in his state against the third term bid yet the evil section of the disgruntled TBO people are out to nail him.

By this time most of these people, remnants of the Kwankwaso administration, the disgruntled section of the TBO, a section of the Ulama had lost rhythm of the Kano politics because in their calculation Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau had no support of the people. Even though he had offered more employment than any other governor in the history of the state and had also initiated the most people oriented policies in the history of Kano. These include the provision of highest amount of fertilizer ever in the history of the state, the Special Mass Food Production, the Tsangaya Program, the Youth Empowerment Program and the Constituency Projects. The Shekarau Administration provided 50000 and 65000 tons of fertilizer in 2004 and 2005 respectively the highest ever by any previous administration was 25000 tons. In line with its belief in participatory approach to governance the administration has built more Islamiyya and Qur'anic Schools and Mosques as demanded by communities more than any other administration in the history of Nigeria. Hence the allegation by the TBO radio station that the government is not implementing the Shari'ah would never be accepted by any reasonable person.

The remnants of the Kwankwaso administration and the Shiites in Kano carried out extensive campaign and propaganda within the intelligence circles and the internet that the Hisbah of the Shekarau Administration is a terrorist group. But the hypocritical TBO private radio station because of their intention and commitment to the destruction of the Shekarau Administration never exposed this evil plan despite the fact that some people had taken it to them. Some individuals forged a letter and signed it in the name of the state Hisbah Commander stating that he wanted support from Shiite Iran and heterodox Libya. The Obasanjo administration swung into action with the belief that it is the time to hit back at Shekarau and the Shari'ah which has been compromised by selfish and disgruntled sections of the Ulama and politicians. Shekarau and Kalu were targeted for their anti-third term stance it should also be recalled that the two states were best in bench marking by international donors which was later altered by the National Planning Commission to make the states in support of third term bid as the most successful. The Obasanjo government believed that this is the best opportunity to negotiate the Shari'ah out since it has been compromised by its actors led by the section of TBO who have already decided to finish the governor. This is the great irony which could either be as a result of ignorance or a conspiracy to finish both General Buhari and Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau. This is because General Buhari himself is a political child of the Shari'ah and the anti-Obasanjo feeling in the North. Why did he allow the TBO people to make him believe that he does not need the Shari'ah anymore but the Achaba riders of Kano? It is very hard to comprehend why General Buhari allowed these opportunists to spoil his relationship with Kano and to be used as an opportunity to weaken the government and eventually destroy the gains of the Shari'ah while his national ascendance still remains a mirage.

The current face-off between Kano State Government and the Obasanjo Federal Government is indeed one of the political landmarks towards 2007. PDP wants Kano back to its fold, a section of TBO have vowed to remove Shekarau at all costs because in their belief his victory means their political obliteration and they don't mind sacrificing General Buhari by weakening his support in Kano This is because the governor would obviously take a large chunk of General Buhari's supporters especially when the people realize that the General prefers the Achaba people to the Shari'ah implementation. It is indeed a muddy trap the selfish TBO people have put the people of Kano. May Allah save his innocent souls and may Kano never go back to the politics of violence of the 1999-2003. It should be noted that the Shekarau government does not support political brigandage hence the peace that now prevails in the state after four years of high handedness and official support for brigands by the PDP government. The PDP is afraid that the 9000 Hisbah Guides could stop the plan of rigging the elections in 2007. It is sincerely hoped that the efforts of concerned members of the public will succeed in ensuring that the disgruntled TBO do not have upper hand on General Buhari so that peace and tranquility will prevail and cordial relationship between the General and the Shekarau Administration will continue to flourish so that Kano will not degenerate into the Tabou-Santsi political clashes of the 1980s. Shekarau is indeed the first Governor in the history of Kano that has remained humble and respectful to all the major segments of the elites (traditional leaders, Ulama, businessmen and retired technocrats) since he assumed office, may Allah maintain this tranquility in the interest of the people of Kano State.