Self-proclaimed atheist and president of the Humanist Association of Nigeria, Mubarak Bala, was today sentenced to 24 years imprisonment for blasphemy by the Kano State High Court 4.
Mubarak, who hails from Kano, had been arrested on April 28, 2020 at his home in Kaduna, and was detained at the Gabasawa police station in Kaduna for two days before he was taken to Kano, where he was slammed with an 18-count charge bordering on blasphemy against Allah (SWT) and Prophet Muhammad (SAW).
The court sent him to a correctional facility for about two years before finally sentencing today.
At today’s hearing, Bala pleaded guilty to all the charges even against the advice of his lawyer, James Ibor, who tried to dissuade him.
The counsel told the court that his client entered the guilty plea out of fear and frustration, pointing out that he was in prison for two years.
He also told the court that his client had suffered a mental problem, for which he was treated at Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital, Kano.
However, Bala, who seemed unruffled, raised his hand and told the court that he was guilty as charged but argued that he did not intend to cause violence with his Facebook posts, saying he would take caution henceforth not to repeat them.
The presiding judge of the court, sitting at Audu Bako Secretariat in the city, Justice Faruk Lawan, reminded the accused that his constitutional right to religion stopped where that of others began, pointing out that there were many people with his type of ideology but they did not go about insulting other people’s religion.
Activists have campaigned for Bala’s release.
Five days ago Amnesty International described his detention as arbitrary, arguing that the Federal High Court had on December 21, 2020 ordered his release and that the charges against him be dropped.
