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Reps reject bill to expand Islamic law in 1999 Constitution
Reps reject bill to expand Islamic law in 1999 Constitution
The House of Representatives on Thursday rejected a bill seeking to expand Islamic law in the 1999 constitution.
The bill intended to amend sections 24, 262, 277, and 288 of the 1999 constitution by removing the word “personal” wherever “Islamic law” is mentioned from the section, allowing “Islamic law” to stand on its own.
Section 262 (1) of the constitution states that: “The Sharia Court of Appeal shall, in addition to such other jurisdiction as may be conferred upon it by an Act of the National Assembly, exercise such appellate and supervisory jurisdiction in civil proceedings involving questions of Islamic personal law”.
Leading the debate, Missau said the inclusion of the word “personal” after “Islamic” restricts its application, especially in Islamic commercial laws.
“The 1999 constitution provided for personal Islamic law. The constitution did not envisage the dynamism and development that may come into the country,” he said.
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“For instance, in 2003, the constitution did not foresee the advent of Jaiz Bank which operates under commercial Islamic law.”
The lawmaker said the word “personal” should be removed to benefit Islamic commercial law and Islamic international law, among others.
During the debate, legislators were split along regional lines, with northerners supporting the bill while their southern counterparts kicked against it.
Opposing the bill, Solomon Bob from Rivers said the amendment would broaden the application of Islamic law beyond the “personal matters” envisaged by the framers of the Constitution.
“The implication is that if the word ‘personal’ is removed, Islamic law would have broader implications. The word ‘personal’ was put there for a reason,” the lawmaker said.
Abdul Hakeem Ado from Kano supported the bill, saying Islamic commercial law needs to be sustained.
Saidu Abdullahi from Niger state and Ahmed Satomi from Borno were among the lawmakers who spoke in favour of the bill.
Jonathan Gaza from Nasarawa, Ademorin Kuye from Lagos, and Awaji-Inombek Abiante from Rivers kicked against the proposed legislation.
Bamidele Salam from Osun strongly opposed the bill, saying issues of religion should be restricted to personal preference because Nigeria is a secular state.
“As students of history, we all know the background of this particular section during the various constitutional assemblies of 1979, 1989, and 1999. The drafters of the constitution were highly sensitive to religion,” he said.
“At the 1979 constitutional assembly, this particular section was very contentious until the military intervened to halt further debate, stating that the application of Islamic law would be restricted to personal matters like estates.
“We must be careful with any changes to the constitution that could further widen divisions in Nigeria. In any case, the matters my colleague seeks to address are already covered by existing laws.”
The bill was however rejected when it was put to a voice vote by Deputy Speaker Benjamin Kalu, who presided.
Reps reject bill to expand Islamic law in 1999 Constitution
metro
200,000 repentant terrorists surrender, drop arms in North East – CDS
200,000 repentant terrorists surrender, drop arms in North East – CDS
The Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Musa, has disclosed that about 200,000 repentant terrorists have so far dropped their arms and surrendered to troops in the North East, noting that the twin strategy of kinetic and non-kinetic operations was responsible for this achievement.
The CDS made this known at the Security and Justice Symposium organised by the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) in collaboration with the British High Commission, which began at the National Counterterrorism Centre in Abuja on Tuesday.
He disclosed that the theme of the symposium, ”Securing Peace, Ensuring Justice, Protection, Conduct, and Accountability,” speaks volumes about the deluge of security challenges the armed forces and security agencies are facing.
His words, “All the challenges we are facing today have to do with fairness, equity, justice, and accountability.
“There will not be peace without justice, equity, fairness, and accountability. In our operations, we are conducting both kinetic and non-kinetic strategies, which have to a large extent yielded significant successes, and we want to particularly thank the National Security Adviser for his great support in this regard.
“Nigeria is going through so many challenges, and we feel we’re able to address this, and everybody has a sense of belonging. A lot of the security challenges we are having, we are sure, will go down. I want to thank the National Security Advisor for all the support he’s given us, both the kinetic and the non-kinetic.
“We have said it; the kinetic aspect is just less than 30%. The non-kinetic has a lot to play. The non-kinetic, because when you have democracy, people must have the evidence of democracy. As long as it tells people to sleep well and be peaceful, and they are hungry, their children cannot eat, and all this creates more problems.
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“The issue of informants. We have to look at how we tackle this issue of informants. Because these are the people who have created the issue.
200,000 repentant terrorists surrender, drop arms in North East – CDS
metro
Robbers kill two members in shoot-out with Delta police
Robbers kill two members in shoot-out with Delta police
The spokesperson for the police in Delta State, SP Bright Edafe, has confirmed the death of two robbery suspects in the state.
Mr Edafe, who disclosed this to journalists on Tuesday in Warri, said that the deceased were killed from the bullets shot by their gang members.
According to him, the incident occurred on Wednesday at Effurun, Uvwie Local Government Area of the state.
Mr Edafe explained that the deceased were leading the police surveillance team attached to the Ekpan Division to their hideout when they were caught during a shoot-out.
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“The suspects were arrested at Effurun roundabout with a bag containing 57 live cartridges and other items. They were leading the surveillance team to their hideout at Warri/Sapele road when their gang members, on sighting the vehicle of the police team, engaged them in a shootout.During the gun duel, the arrested suspects that were leading the police team were fatally wounded by the gun shot of their colleagues. The two injured suspects were taken to the hospital and later died while receiving treatment,” he said.
Mr Edafe said that items recovered from the hoodlums hideout included: one English pump action gun, one locally made cut-to-size gun and eight live cartridges.
Others were: six iPhones, Smart phones and a Rolex wrist watch.
He said that the command had intensified manhunt on the fleeing members of the gang.
Robbers kill two members in shoot-out with Delta police
(NAN)
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