A member of the Kano State Hisbah Board, identified as Idris Ahmed Gama, who was arrested for condemning the arrest of some members of a Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer organisation, (LGBTQ) has pleaded for leniency, News About Nigeria reports.
He denied being a member of any group or association advocating for LGBTQ rights, and stated that he was only invited to a workshop by a group named Women Initiative for Sustainable Empowerment and Equality (WISE).
According to him, he was invited to the workshop on women’s empowerment via WhatsApp, where a paper was presented on human rights.
He appealed for leniency and promised not to associate with WISE in the future.
“I was personally invited and after the program, I was interviewed on how the police arrested LGBTQ members and I said it was a violation of human rights,” he stated.
Reacting to the issue, the Commander General of the Board, Sheikh Aminu Daurawa, while speaking to newsmen in the State on Monday, said that the state government has already banned any group or association that promotes LGBTQ.
According to him, the agency has clamped down on many groups promoting LGBTQ in the state under the guise of empowerment.
He stressed that Kano distanced itself from any agreement or association that contravenes the Sharia and Nigerian laws that prohibit same-sex marriage.
The Commander-General, therefore, urged the public, religious and traditional leaders, media, and all relevant stakeholders to join the fight against immorality in the state.
Recall that the Kano State government, through the commissioner for information, Baba Halilu Dantiye, on Monday, ordered a crackdown on all groups promoting LGBTQ in the state.
According to the commissioner, the activities of the group, Women Initiative for Sustainable Empowerment and Equality (WISE), were a complete breach of the state’s moral standards and a violation of the Shari’ah.
