Islamic Cleric Sentenced To Death, Petitions CJN, Alleges Judicial Misconduct

A detained Islamic cleric, Abduljabbar Kabara, currently held at the Medium Security Custodial Centre in Kuje, Abuja, has petitioned the Chief Justice of Nigeria, alleging judicial misconduct, political persecution and attempts to suppress his appeal against a death sentence handed down in 2022.

In a “Letter of Further Complaint” dated March 26, 2026, Kabara urged the CJN to intervene and ensure that his appeal is heard without interference, claiming that earlier complaints he submitted to the President of the Court of Appeal received no response.

Kabara was sentenced to death by hanging in December 2022 by an Upper Sharia Court in Kano, presided over by Mallam Ibrahim Sarki Yola, after he was found guilty of making blasphemous statements about the Holy Prophet Muhammad during his sermons.

Following the conviction, the cleric filed an appeal challenging the judgment, arguing that he was denied a fair hearing and that his defence team was not given an adequate opportunity to present its case.

He also questioned the trial court’s jurisdiction and maintained that the statements presented at trial were scholarly references rather than blasphemous remarks.

In his petition, Kabara claimed that the appeal process had been deliberately stalled despite his early efforts to challenge the judgment.

“With utmost respect, I, Abduljabbar Sheikh Nasir Kabara (The Appellant), write this letter to Your Lordship in order to promote my complaint regarding the above-mentioned Appeal,” he wrote.

He said his initial complaint dated February 18, 2026, and a reminder sent on March 13 had not received any response “whether in written or by action.”

Kabara stated that he filed a notice of appeal on December 23, 2022, eight days after the judgement, and later submitted his brief of argument, but alleged that the Kano State Government had used its influence to prevent the appeal from progressing.

The cleric further accused judicial and government authorities of acting together against him, claiming that the entire trial process was flawed.

“Both the Judiciary and the Government used their powers against me in this case of mine, violated my dignity/rights unlawfully, and oppressed me despite the fact that I committed no offence,” he said.

Kabara also urged the CJN to review the full court record of the case, which he said runs into nearly 5,000 pages.

“Any just person who reads the nearly 5,000-page Record of this case of mine will feel pain and sorrow over the injustice done to me by powerful institutions,” he stated.

In the petition, Kabara accused authorities of manipulating charges against him during the legal process.

He alleged that prosecutors altered the legal basis of the charges and attempted to introduce new provisions while the case was on appeal.

He also claimed that lawyers imposed on him during the trial attempted to compromise his case.

“The Respondent colluded with the lawyers that Adamu Adamu imposed to me,” he alleged. According to him, one of the lawyers allegedly attempted to destroy parts of the case record.

Kabara appealed to the CJN to exercise supervisory authority over the judiciary to ensure that his appeal is heard either in Kano or another division of the Court of Appeal without interference.

He maintained that a transparent judicial process would ultimately clear him of wrongdoing.

The cleric insisted that the charges against him were politically motivated and built on constitutional violations, including alleged breaches of Section 38(1) of the 1999 Constitution relating to freedom of religion.

He wrote, “The biggest/serious thing in this meeting was the statement the Ambassador made that: ‘They want to make me in Nigeria like Ayatullah Khomeini in Iran!’.

“Upon saying this, it immediately reminded me of a long explanation earlier given to me by Adamu Adamu concerning how Khomeini carried out the revolution in Iran. A very alarming statement, especially the word that he said Khomeini used to say when the killing intensified and his people started running away, he says: ‘Khandar makhyan khat khan’ or a similar word, and as soon as Khomeini said it they would return and being killed, until the corpses of people piled up and blocked the chains of artillery vehicle from turning on the road… up to the end of the stories he told me that were very alarming.

“This made me dislike the good news that the Iranian Ambassador told me, because its meaning was that I would become the cause of shedding the blood and lives of my fellow Nigerians.

“This Ambassador’s statement also reminded me of a prepared mixed liquid which Adamu Adamu had previously made me drink through deception, which confirms that the mixed liquid was connected to transforming me like Khomeini. All indications show that this mixed liquid was to be given to me to drink in Tehran if we had met with the Important Person mentioned earlier, after I refused to go, they followed me with it to Nigeria.

“I built this suspicion on many reasons, such as: The phone call that Adamu Adamu made to (Abdullahi) Ganduje (former Kano State Governor) after he made me drink that mixed liquid, they discussed on me in a way that showed he gave Ganduje the go-ahead to declare war against me because everything was completed. It will be heard that Ganduje was conferring me with METATSINE in his attacking statement against me.

“Second reason, the entrance of former Borno State Governor, Madu Sharif, at that moment, with the kind of conversation Adamu Adamu had with him.

“Third reason: in a meeting that took place in Kazimiyyah between me and close associates of Khamenei, namely Tajik and Abu Ali whom Shu’aibu Gashua was interpreting for me, Tajik made a long statement and concluded it with a statement similar to the Ambassador’s statement that they want to make me Shehu Usmanu mujaddidi in Nigeria. In my response to Tajik, I clearly told him my strong disapproval of any plan that is not based on scholarly preaching.

“Not long after this happened, Adamu Adamu sent envoys to me, who clearly informed me that the preparation of my training program in Tehran had been completed. He gave them $20,000 American Dollars and some amount I did not remember, when the passport collectors came, I clearly told them that, I would not go, he should find another willing their Shi’a members to send them in my place.

“Adamu Adamu thought that I looked down on the money, so he sent his envoy named Tijjani Yahudu, who linked me with him on his phone, where Adamu Adamu informed me that when the month ends, I should meet him in Abuja, there is ₦100,000,000, which he will give me, and here is an advance of ₦10,000,000 he sent.

“Seeing that the month ended, yet I did not call him, so he increased the contract price through his envoy named Mamuda Sunusi, saying, you will be given a contract in which you will get about ₦500,000,000, hurry to Abuja to Mallam Adamu; he wants to meet you.

“By the blessing of parents’ prayers, Allah gave me the strength of heart/courage despite my extreme need for this money; even by phone, I did not call Adamu Adamu, rather I felt that I dislike even speaking with him, Adamu Adamu, let alone speaking on the money, due to the dirty need they want assign me to do.

“Seeing that I refused to go to Abuja, and I did not give him a phone call, Adamu Adamu ask his envoy named Aminu Shehu to give me the phone number of a person named Baffa Bichi (TetFund) and added that, he would come on Friday to pray in your mosque; call him with this number, there is a message he will give you.

“For confirmation, the Chief Justice can contact this person named Baffa Bichi: Have I ever called him on the phone even once?

“All these things that happened did not make Adamu Adamu abandon his effort of making me a terrorist. Except that he changed the method by inviting me to visit Imam Ali. After my arrival in Najaf, the Iranian envoy named Shu’aibu Gashua informed me that he would collect my passport to process a visa to Iran.

“Upon hearing this, I called the person holding my passport, named Salisu, and told him, wherever my passport is, bring it to me; I am returning home today. I took the flight and returned to Nigeria without bidding farewell to the 14 people who accompanied me, and till today, 26/03/2026, they do not know the reason why I returned without bidding them farewell, except if they read this statement, which I have made now to the Chief Justice.”

“That was why a battalion of security forces was sent to invade my house and my mosque for seven days with heavy weapons together with orders to open fire on me, my family and all my followers, after Allah bestowed his power and saved me.

“That is why Adamu Adamu again made a new plan of using the power of the law improperly in order to achieve his goal of killing me and even confiscating the institutions/centres that I worked hard to establish.”

Kabara also raised concerns about a separate legal action by an individual, Musa Santuraki Pali, who allegedly sought ownership of his institutions.

He further alleged that court rulings contained inconsistencies that could be used to undermine his case.

Kabara also accused prison authorities and government officials of ignoring his requests.

“The Prison authority used power to separate me from all my case documents,” he said.

He added, “The Hon. Minister of Interior ignored the calls being made to him regarding my matter.”

Kabara described the Chief Justice’s office as his last hope for justice.