Kano cleric sentenced to death by hanging tells court: "I Will Die A Hero, Show Me No Mercy."- Abduljabbar Nasiru Kabara

 After notorious Kano Islamic preacher Abduljabbar Nasiru Kabara urged an Upper Sharia Court judge not to offer him pity during his blasphemy trial.

  Kabara showed up in court today to continue his trial for allegedly blaspheming Islam's Prophet Muhammad (PBUH).

 Kabara was originally detained and charged in July 2021 by the Abdullahi Ganduje-led administration of Kano State. The government charged the well-known priest for blaspheming the Holy Prophet Muhammad, an act it said may promote public harmony.

 The court said today at the case hearing that it had found the persecuted clergyman guilty of all the accusations made against him.

 The state government was mandated by the judge to take the two mosques that belonged to Kabara as part of his punishment. However, the inmate had 30 days to file an appeal against the ruling before it was too late. But before delivering the verdict in a court proceeding that lasted more than two hours, Mallam Ibrahim Sarki Yola inquired whether Kabara had anything to say.

The defense attorney, Barrister Aminu Ado Abubakar, asked the court to be lenient with the accused because he made his actions out of ignorance. Kabara, however, elicited conflicting responses when he stepped up and said that this was his first encounter with the lawyer and that he did not know him.

 “I don’t know him. This is the first time I am seeing him. He should not be allowed to speak on my behalf. I can and should be allowed to speak for myself,” he said.

 The judge did note that the attorney is acknowledged by the court as the defense attorney. Kabara went on to say: “My lord, after I heard how you twisted all my evidence, you turned around all my submissions upside down, you have assigned words to me that I have never uttered.

 “Deliver your judgement, and I am not asking for leniency at all. I want all my followers to know that I will die a hero and I don’t want you (the Judge) Ibrahim Sarki Yola to do me any favour or grant leniency. This is my last word. Assalamu Alaikum.” 

Before passing judgment, the court issued a 20-minute break order.