Reported by: Ijeoma G | Edited by: Oravbiere Osayomore Promise.
The Court of Appeal sitting in Kano has issued a firm order to the Nigerian Correctional Service to produce Islamic scholar Sheikh Abduljabar Kabara before the court for the hearing of his appeal. The order, delivered on Monday, April 20, 2026, came after the presiding judge noted that Kabara had filed his appeal personally and not through a legal counsel, making his physical presence before the court essential for the proper prosecution of his case.
Kabara is currently in custody following a judgment by an Upper Shari’a Court, which sentenced him to death by hanging for alleged blasphemy. The three-member panel of the Court of Appeal, presided over by Justice Mohammed Lawal-Shuaibu, with Justices Abubakar Muazu-Lamido and Ahmad Ramat-Mohammed, adjourned the matter to Thursday, April 23, 2026, for hearing at the instance of the defence counsel.
The specific order from the court stated: “In view that the appellant filed the appeal in person and not through counsel, he is to appear personally. Also, in view of the fact that the appellant is in custody, it is hereby ordered that the Correctional Service produce him on the next adjourned date, April 23, 2026, for the purpose of prosecuting his appeal”.
The hearing on Monday began with both the appellant and the prosecution absent. At that point, a man who identified himself as Usman Malam-Hussaini stood up to inform the court that Kabara had sent him with a letter requesting his transfer from Kuje Prison in Abuja back to Kano, in order to have unrestricted access to his legal records. In response, the presiding judge summoned the Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice of Kano State, Abdulkarim Kabiru-Maude, to appear before the court and stood the matter down.
When the case was recalled, the Assistant Director of Public Prosecutions in the Kano State Ministry of Justice, Barrister Zahradeen Kofar-Mata, informed the court that the Attorney General was indisposed and had instructed him to tender an apology for his inability to appear in person. Kofar-Mata explained that the matter had been assigned to a private lawyer and attributed the procedural hiccup to a mix-up at the court registry.
The presiding judge, however, cautioned the Attorney General, describing his failure to appear as disrespectful to the court, before adjourning the matter. The development came just weeks after Kabara had petitioned the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun, alleging that judicial and government authorities had systematically obstructed his right to appeal his death sentence. The 14-page petition, dated March 26, 2026, accused certain appellate judges of altering dates and misrepresenting his submissions.
The case dates back to December 15, 2022, when an Upper Shari’a Court in Kano presided over by Malam Ibrahim Sarki Yola sentenced Kabara to death by hanging after finding him guilty on four counts of blasphemy.
The Kano State Government had charged the cleric over remarks deemed blasphemous against Prophet Muhammad, which were allegedly made during sermons on August 10, October 25, and December 20, 2019. At his trial, when asked if he had anything to say before sentencing, Kabara refused to ask for leniency, declaring: “I will die a hero and I don’t want you to do me any favour or grant me leniency”. The prosecution’s case rested largely on audio recordings of Kabara’s lectures, in which the court found that he had misinterpreted certain Hadiths in a manner considered insulting to the Prophet. Kabara has consistently maintained that he was merely engaging in theological debate based on classical Islamic texts.
In the years since his conviction, Kabara has faced significant obstacles in pursuing his appeal. He was transferred from a correctional facility in Kano to the Medium Security Custodial Centre in Kuje, Abuja, in October 2025, a move officials attributed to security reasons. In a petition dated April 3, 2026, Kabara argued that his transfer to Abuja had denied him access to vital case documents needed for his appeal, including thousands of pages of court proceedings and legal briefs left behind in Kano.
The cleric also complained that no production warrant had been issued despite repeated efforts by his supporters to facilitate his appearance in court. With the Court of Appeal now ordering his production on April 23, the path may finally be clear for the long-delayed appeal to proceed, though the court’s stern warning to the state Attorney General suggests lingering tensions over the handling of the case.
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