By Ishaya Ibrahim, News Editor
A video showing Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Isa Ali Pantami, and the founder of Boko Haram, Mohammed Yusuf, has surfaced online, with the two locked in a heated debate on Islamic theology, especially as it pertains to western education.
The Boko Haram leader, Yusuf, was killed in 2009 for leading an insurrection against the Nigerian state. He was only 39-years old at the time and was succeeded by the violent Abubakar Shekau who has been leading the group in a killing spree of innocent Nigerians for accepting western education or not playing a part in the jihadist movement.
The date when the debate between the two men took place is not exactly known, but it certainly happened before July 30, 2009, when Mohammed Yusuf was killed by the police in Maiduguri, Borno State after the Boko Haram’s followers had earlier slain scores of policemen and civilians.
A fallout of the appearance of the old debate on the internet sphere has created another controversy for Pantami whom a newspaper claimed was on U.S. Terror Watch List. The report has no attribution. The minister has threatened to sue the purveyors of the report with libel.
In the debate, which was held in the Hausa language, Mohammed Yusuf argued against the spread of western education. He argued that such educational institutions did not align with Islamic creed and history.
Citing some fatwa (rulings of Muslim authorities), he forcefully blamed Jews and Christians for establishing such educational institutions which corrupt the morals of Muslim children. The crux of his argument was that such educational structures from western countries in the northern part of Nigeria were harmful to Muslim society.
Pantami, in his rebuttal, argued in favour of having schools since they were run by Muslims and reflect Muslim values. He argued that such schools have prayer time for Muslim students, mosques and have tutors who were Muslim. He said the schools in Nigeria teach the same curriculum as the educational institutions in Saudi Arabia, the kind of system that Yusuf favours
The link to the debate
In the debate,