by Achadu Gabriel, Kaduna
About six months after, Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) is yet to reach a compromise to react on the recent exclusion of Christians from the amnesty granted to prison inmates in Nigerian Correctional Service (NCS), Kaduna State Command.
Both Caleb Ma’aji-led Kaduna State CAN and 19 Northern States CAN are yet to make a pronouncement when contacted, about the October/November 2023 amnesty granted to Kaduna inmates in which all the 25 beneficiaries were Muslims.
But, an official of CAN Kaduna North local government, particularly the chairman, said the decision to respond to such matter is not something that could be taken by one person alone, when contacted. He, however, assured that there will be response.
“Good afternoon, Sir. The decision is not what one person can take. You will surely get response but not emergency. Please, give us time,” CAN Kaduna North stated.
Recalled that the amnesty was granted to prison inmates in Kaduna Command of NCS, around October/November 2023, under the administration of Governor Uba Sani, but all the beneficiaries were Muslims only.
The lists of 20 Christians later compiled and submitted were ignored and excluded from the amnesty, which raised tension among prison inmates within the prison premises.
It was revealed that, a list of 25 Muslim prison inmates given the amnesty was compiled under ‘tight secret’ inside mosque. “They are about 25 of them; that is what I got. I may not be exact. They were released in October-November 2023, by the Governor…..
Notable among the Muslim beneficiaries of the amnesty includes Ibrahim Mustapha (jailed for alleged impersonating); a Medical Doctor in Yola; Ibrahim Umar an INEC official from Adamawa State accused of taking over N300m from Dizzani the former Petroleum Minister, and Inman Shagari who was the General Imam for the inmates in Prison, among other Muslims, to mention but a few.
However, a source said, Governor Sani was not pleased upon learning that all the beneficiaries of the amnesty were Muslims (from same faith) to the detriment of Christian counterparts, as the lists was reportedly complied inside a mosque.
It was also gathered that, after several complaints in prison that, Governor Uba Sani favoured only the Muslims, the church in prison was directed by the then Commissioner of Police Kaduna Prison, to write their members’ list, which was complied, but later abandoned, as no action was taken by the Governor till date.
A prison insider source said, the church list was engineered due to situation reports of angry Christians by concerned prison officers about the security of the prison, which promoted them to ask the Deputy Commissioner in prison to ask Church to also write its own list.
According to prison sources, Governor El-Rufai gave amnesty to a lot of Christians with just a simple ailment during his time. “I wonder why Governor Sani did this,” the source lamented.
“That was how the church list was compiled, and 20 were selected from the over 80 names, with promises by prison Chief of Staff that ‘action will be expedited on it’ since last year, around October/November, but nothing came out of it till date,” the source stated.