Ibrahim Musa, who was with a family member, Binta Sulaiman, was arrested by DSS at the Aminu Kano International Airport.
By Jeffrey Agbo
Officials of the Department of State Services (DSS) have arrested the spokesman for the Islamic Movement in Nigeria (IMN), also known as Shi’ites, Ibrahim Musa.
A statement issued by Abdullahi Usman on behalf of Musa’s family said the Shi’ites spokesman was arrested at the Aminu Kano International Airport on Wednesday morning on his way to Saudi Arabia for the lesser Hajj (Umrah).
Musa is also the editor-in-chief of Almizan Newspaper, a weekly newspaper published in Hausa language.
The statement said no reason has been provided by the authorities for his arrest even as he is known for his role in the call for the release of the IMN leader, Sheikh Ibraheem Zakzaky, who was arrested by government in 2015 in Zaria, Kaduna State.
According to the statement, “this is announcing the arrest of the Editor-in-chief of Almizan newspaper, a weekly newspaper published in Hausa, Malam Ibrahim Musa, by the Department of State Service (DSS).
“Ibrahim Musa, who was with a family member, Binta Sulaiman, was abducted by the Nigeria’s secret police, DSS, at the Aminu Kano International Airport early morning on Wednesday while on his way to Saudi Arabia for the lesser Hajj (Umrah).
“Meanwhile, no reasons have been provided by the authorities for his arrest, even as he is known for his role in the call for the release of Sheikh Ibraheem Zakzaky (H), who was arrested at the wake of a clampdown and extrajudicial killing of about 1,000 of his followers by the Nigerian government in 2015 in Zaria, Kaduna State.
“He was part of the campaign that got the Federal High Court judgment ordering the release and compensation of Sheikh Zakzaky, the leader of Islamic Movement in Nigeria, for which it is believed the security agents who lost in the case are displeased.
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“Human rights organisations, especially the Amnesty International (AI), had pressured the immediate past governor of Kaduna State, Malam Nasiru Elrufai, to publicly announce that his government had buried about 350 people killed in the extrajudicial killing in a mass grave at Mando village in Kaduna.
“Ibrahim Musa is known to have been active in speaking against the acts of state terrorism, extrajudicial killings and marginalisation of a minority group of Muslims by the Nigerian Government under former President Muhammadu Buhari.”
“He placed his life on the line to ensure justice is done and thousands of those arrested following the state managed mass murder were released by the government using available judicial means.
“We wish to call for the immediate release and safety of Malam Ibrahim Musa whose only crime is standing against genocide and disregard to law and order perpetrated by those in power under the Buhari regime.
“We also wish to draw the attention of the authorities and other stakeholders to the dangers behind extending the murder activities in which innocent men, women and children were extrajudicially killed by the immediate past regime, to the current regime of President Bola Ahmad Tinubu.
“We want to believe that the current government of President Bola Tinubu would not want to identify itself with the abuse of democratic tenets, human rights abuse and intimidation through genocide perpetrated by the immediate past regime.
“Hence, we reiterate the call for his immediate and unconditional release,” the statement read.