Opinion
On the Much-Desired Law to Regulate Religious Preaching
By Dalha Isah Fagge.
Recall that in 1985, the Kano State Government enacted a law to regulate Islamic preaching. The law came into force on the first day of February of the same year.
The law is divided into four parts, comprising a total of 18 sections and a number of subsections.
The law seeks to regulate Islamic preaching through the licensing of preachers, limiting the subject or subjects, time and areas of their preaching, keeping comprehensive data of all persons licensed to preach, monitoring the movement and activities of every licensed Islamic preacher, and punishing any person who preaches any Islamic injunction without a preaching permit or without being licensed.
It also provides penalties for anyone who breaches any restriction contained in the face of his permit, the law, or any restriction that may subsequently be made by the Governor.
The law came immediately after the Maitatsine uprising, which unsettled Kano for a considerable period of time.
It also provided for the establishment of religious committees and subcommittees in every emirate.
Recent developments in Sokoto have further raised concerns about the non-existence of a law to check the excesses of preachers.
A major concern raised in 2014, when Boko Haram had almost engulfed all the northern states, was that the law was limited only to Islamic preachers, to the exclusion of preachers of other religions.
This could be the reason why the law has not yet seen the light of day. Those who opposed it contended that it violates Section 42 of the Nigerian Constitution, as well as other provisions, including Sections 39 and 37.
Section 39 provides for freedom of expression, while Section 37 guarantees the right to private and family life.
What Is to Be Done?
Looking at the rate at which religious preaching is taking a dangerous dimension across all faiths, it behoves the National Assembly to seize the moment and enact a law to regulate religious preaching across all faiths and religions.
The time, to me, is now.
Dalha Isah Fagge.
Former Director, Hisbah, Kano State