Niger Imams Dare Tinubu’s Minister, Vows To Go Ahead With Marriage of 100 Girls

• The Imams in Niger state have explained why the mass wedding of the 100 orphaned girls will not be halted
• Niger State Imam Forum maintained strongly that the marriage did not contravene the constitution and teachings of Islam
• This came after the Minister of Women Affairs, Mrs Uju Kennedy-Ohanenye, sued the Speaker of the Niger Assembly, Abdulmalik Sarkin-Daji and petitioned the IGP

Legit.ng journalist Esther Odili has over two years of experience covering political parties and movements.

Niger State Imam Forum, made up of Chief Imams in the state and Islamic Organizations, has vowed to hold the mass weddings of the 100 orphans in the Mariga Local Government Area.

The mass wedding was scheduled to hold on May 24, 2024, but the Speaker of the Niger State House of Assembly, Barrister Abdulmalik Sarkindaji, had withdrawn his support for the wedding involving the orphans from his constituency.

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The speaker withdrew his support after the Minister of Women Affairs, Mrs Uju Kennedy-Ohanenye, raised concerns about the legality of the wedding.

She also sought a court injunction and petitioned the police IGP, to halt the marriage of the girls.

The minister is asking whether the girls’ consent and age for marriage, as defined by the law including the Child Rights Act, were ensured.

Why the marriage of the 100 girls will hold, Imams speak

As reported by Daily Trust on Wednesday, May 15, the Forum said the wedding would go on as planned because it did not contravene the sections of the Nigerian constitution and teachings of Islam.

Imams order Tinubu's minister to withdraw court case

Director General, Niger state Religious Affairs, Dr Umar Farouk, who read out the resolutions of the forum’s emergency meeting in Minna, the state capital, on Wednesday, gave the Minister a 7-day ultimatum to withdraw her court case and petition against the Speaker of the Niger Assembly, or face legal action.

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The forum also asked her to apologise to the citizens of Niger and the speaker of the state assembly, over alleged blackmailing.

Imams tell Tinubu to sack Mrs Uju Kennedy-Ohanenye

Farouk said the May 24, 2024, fixed for the wedding was sacrosanct. He added that the Imam Forum in conjunction with the parents of the brides will go ahead with the ceremony since the speaker had done his part by donating to ensure the success of the wedding.

Dr Farouk also called on President Ahmed Bola Tinubu to sack the minister for alleged incompetence and an attempt to cause religious disharmony in Nigeria.

Kwankwaso, Yusuf wed 1,700 couples in Kano

Earlier, Legit.ng reported that the New Nigeria People's Party (NNPP) presidential candidate during the February 2023 election, Rabiu Kwankwaso, and Kano state governor, Abba Kabir Yusuf, joined 1,700 couples at a state-sponsored mass wedding.

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Kwankwaso was the representative of the grooms, while Governor Yusuf was the representative (Wali) of the brides.

Kwankwaso counselled the couples who participated in the mass wedding. He urged them not to check their spouses’ phones, which could help prevent marriages from falling apart.

Source: Legit.ng