The U.S. should be at the forefront of those demanding that Yahaya Sharif-Aminu be cleared and released. Instead, our own government is waging war against the freedom of speech.
“Nigerian Singer Sentenced To Death, Sharif-Aminu Appeals Conviction At Supreme Court, Wants Blasphemy Declared Unconstitutional,” Sahara Reporters, November 9, 2022:
Yahaya Sharif-Aminu, a musician sentenced to death by hanging in 2020 after being convicted of blasphemy, has approached the Supreme Court of Nigeria to challenge his conviction.
This was seen in court documents filed by his counsel, Kola Alapinni Esq, which were obtained by SaharaReporters on Wednesday.
According to the documents, Sharif-Aminu is asking the apex court to declare that the offence of blasphemy is not recognised in Nigerian law.
SaharaReporters exclusively learnt on Wednesday that the governor of Kano, Abdullahi Ganduje and the state Attorney General, Musa Abdullahi Lawan had just been served court papers with regard to the appeal.
The death sentence was passed on Sharif-Aminu by a Sharia court, which a high court overturned. It, however, denied the musician bail and ordered his re-trial before another Sharia court judge due to irregularities in the original trial.
The musician approached the appeal court to overturn the order for his retrial for blasphemy. His lawyer argued that he ought to be removed from detention….
Sharif-Aminu is also seeking “an order declaring S.382(b) of the Sharia Penal Code Law of Kano State 2000 being in conflict and incompatible with S.34(1)(a), S.38(1), S.39(1), and other provisions of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria…
