By Achadu Gabriel Kaduna…
Between Mal. EL-rufai and Idibia Gabriel, the Kaduna journalist accused of allegedly blasphemy, who to blame, perhaps is the questions consistently been asked by many Nigerians without corresponding answers.
Recalled that, In his futile attempt to defend Mrs Oby Ezekesili, immediate past Kaduna Governor and former FCT minister, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai derided Christians by the use of sexual epithets when referring to our Lord Jesus Christ. He simply defiled Christ on twitter
He went overboard when, on his Twitter page, “today January 27, 2013, said our Lord Jesus Christ had sex with Mary Magdalene, according to Dr Thomas Agande’s statement.
“We see this as a very insensitive, irresponsible, and a offensive thing to say about Christ, and an attack on the sensibilities of Christians globally.
El-Rufai betrayed his lack of respect for our Lord Jesus Christ and obvious hatred for Christians. How else can one explain his effrontery and buffoonery when he seemingly jokingly twitted that Christ had sex with Mary Magdalene.
El-Rufai who aspires rule a multi religious nation, should have been circumspect in his use of words when referring to the sacred.
It is on record that less offensive things have been said about the Prophet Mohammed which led to loss of Christian lives.
The former minister has just told Nigerians that he lacks the decency to rule a multi religious nation, if he should display such disrespect for the sacred and thinks it is funny.His Tweet shows he is not a decent man.
He has disregarded the collective sensibilities of Christians all over the world by this very offensive reference to our Lord Jesus Christ, but was neither stoned to death or killed by followers of Christ in the face of equality for all races.
Below is the link to El Rufai Tweets
Nasir El-Rufai @ elrufai “@zebbook : If Jesus criticizes Jonathan’s govt, Maku/Abati/Okupe will say he slept with MaryMadgalene.”..LWKMD…..
3:39 p.m. Sun, Jan 27.
Coincidentally, in a similar manner a sad incident of an alleged blasphemy accusation against Idibia came up, in his own case, for reposting a viral video of Hamas’ Son, Mosab Hassan Yousef. This unfolded on a Friday morning in Kaduna, specifically during the Jumat prayer day.
The controversy was primarily fueled by my Muslim journalist colleagues, notably a former chairman of the Kaduna State council of the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ), along with other colleagues who also practiced the Muslim faith.
The trouble began when some of my Muslim colleagues, upon seeing the video of Hamas’ Son, which I had reposted in the general WhatsApp group of the Kaduna journalists’ forum on a Thursday, reacted negatively, emotionally, and in an uncivilized and biased manner.
The viral video was titled “Son of Hamas Exposes Muhammad” and was both audible and visually clear. In the video, Hamas’ Son was not alone; he was addressing like-minded Muslims about the history of intolerance in the religion of Islam and its leader.
In this approximately 15-minute video, Hamas’ Son extensively discussed the religious intolerance within Islam, linking it to the brief teachings of Prophet Muhammad’s jihad.
I had gone to bed for the night, and by the time I woke up the following day, which was Friday, I discovered that I had been removed from the Kaduna journalists’ WhatsApp group. The group chat had already been inundated with reactions and counter-reactions, all directed at me.
While some colleagues, including the current council chairman, were trying to calm down their Muslim colleagues, others insisted that it was blasphemous to repost the widely circulated video and that I must be held accountable.
Indeed, a few Christian journalist colleagues who agreed with them suggested that I should be punished, while Muslim colleagues asserted that posting the video was blasphemous against Prophet Muhammad.
The expressions of anger and criticism continued relentlessly, filled with unpleasant comments and outright insults. Some of my more thoughtful and humble colleagues advised me to leave Kaduna due to the increasing threats and insults from Muslim journalists and non-journalists who had been calling and threatening me.
THE JOURNALISTS WhatsApp statements read in parts: “This is blasphemous against the personality of Prophet Muhammad. It’s a hate speech in the highest order; sharing something like this goes beyond journalism, it’s an act of terrorism, bigotry, and hatred.
“Not only is the speech a total slander, but the person who shared it (Mr. Idibia) is committing a serious offensive act against the religion of Islam and Muslims. As such, I call on Mr. Idibia to immediately remove this item from this platform and tender an apology without hesitation!
“Good morning, everyone, please let’s be mindful of what we post. I’ve just seen the video in question. Our admin, please ask Idibia to delete it. Thank you.
“I really want to understand High Chief’s intentions in posting this. He should not only delete it but tender an apology.
“It’s really unfortunate that the speaker, who himself does not understand Islam and the history of Prophet Muhammad (SAW), has become an authority for gullible people to slander Islam.
“Dear colleagues, please let’s not allow the devil’s advocate to be a hindrance to our peace. We should not reshare this anywhere to avoid any untoward incidents. The admin should also remove Idibia immediately from this platform.
“Sharing this by Gabriel Idibia in this platform is a serious blasphemy against our Prophet Muhammad SAW. Not only an apology, Idibia should be removed from the platform immediately, please.
“Please, if anyone can reach the Secretary, Gambo, I have been calling him since, and he is the ONLY admin of the platform. Let him delete the post and remove Idibia.
“Idibia’s numbers are also switched off. If anyone can reach him, please let’s prevent any untoward incidents.
“I want to apologize to everyone who feels offended by Idibia’s post. It was wrong of him to have done that, but please let’s all be calm as the leadership will take action immediately.
“I believe Idibia has read the reactions from many Muslim faithful on this platform. He should understand that there are lines that cannot be crossed. We can’t tolerate such behavior. Not only an apology is demanded, but action must be taken against him as a penalty.
“It’s really unfortunate that such things are here, especially by journalists who should know better and be fair. This is complete ignorance and utter disrespect. It’s unacceptable, despicable, and should be immediately sanctioned.
“Calm down, please. Please, let’s be calm. Please, let’s calm down. What really happened,” he stated.
“One Habib posted: This is blasphemous against the personality of Prophet Muhammad. It’s a hate speech in the highest order; sharing something like this goes beyond journalism, it’s an act of terrorism, bigotry, and hatred,” I stated.
Therefore, I want to call on the federal government and other relevant authorities to enact laws that provide a lasting solution to the issue of blasphemy in Nigeria. This would prevent reckless assaults and killings of innocent people in the name of blaspheming the Prophet.
My life is in danger: Mr. Idibia, fearing for his safety, shared that he had received several calls from people who were not journalists or media practitioners. These individuals were not privy to what had happened in the WhatsApp group, but they learned about it and began threatening him with statements such as “you will pay for your actions.”
“I have been insulted and traumatized and I have been blackmailed, he lamented.
It would be recalled that Deborah Samuel, a Christian student in Sokoto, North West Nigeria was beaten to pulp and burnt to ashes when she was accused of blasphemy against prophet Muhammad in a WhatsApp group chat in Nigeria.
Deborah Samuel’s fellow students at College of Education accused her of blasphemy when they alleged that she posted a blasphemous audio in the school WhatsApp group.
Deborah Samuel’s murderers have not been convicted or arrested by the authority despite the fact their faces were well shown on the Television, till date, working freely on street in Sokoto, Nigeria.
