A Kano State High Court has jailed an atheist, Mubarak Bala, 24 years for incitement and breach of public peace. The presiding judge, Farouk Lawal of Court 4, Audu Bako Secretariat, gave the judgment, yesterday, in Kano, after Bala had pleaded guilty to all 18 counts.

Despite persuasions by his counsel, James Ibor, on him to change his plea, Bala insisted he was guilty as charged.
The convict, who is the President of Humanist Association of Nigeria, was arrested at his home in Kaduna on April 28, 2020 and taken to Kano, where complaints of blasphemy and incitement were lodged against him.

He was accused of posting comments critical of Islam, Allah and Prophet Muhammad on his Facebook timeline that triggered outrage among Muslims.

There had been campaign for his release or trial, with activists saying he was out of touch with his wife and lawyer. His lawyer, however, cited frustration and fear as reasons for his client’s guilty plea, as he had been in detention for two years.

Bala, who appeared unruffled, raised his hand and told the court that he was guilty as charged. However, in his plea of leniency, he said his social media posts were not intended to cause violence, and, therefore, promised not to repeat such posts in future.