Zakzaky four years after court judgment

Danjuma Abdullahi

Press TV, Abuja

On December 2, 2016, the Federal High Court in Abuja handed down its ruling ordering the release of Sheikh Ibrahim Zakzaky and his wife Zeenat.

The court ruled that the arrest and detention of Sheikh Zakzaky were illegal and unconstitutional declaring that the rights of the Islamic cleric have been violated. Despite this historic ruling of the Federal Court, Sheikh Zakzaky and his wife have remained in detention.

In December 2015 following a traffic incident, soldiers of the Nigerian army attacked Zakzaky’s home and worship center killing over three hundred and forty of his supporters, setting the house ablaze and destroying his property. Three of his sons were among those killed during the attack.

Despite several protest in Nigeria and abroad demanding for the release of sheikh Zakzaky and his wife, the Nigerian government has kept a deaf ear. Instead, security operatives have continued to crack down on members of the Islamic Movement in Nigeria killing dozens and injuring and arresting many of them. So far, no one has been held responsible for the Zaria massacre where hundreds were killed.

In addition to ordering for the release of Sheikh Zakzaky and his wife Zeenat, the Federal High Court also ordered the government to pay the sum of twenty-five million naira, about sixty-six thousand dollars each to the Islamic cleric and his wife. So far, the Nigerian government has not implemented any of the order of the court, and has not been willing to grant interviews to Press TV on the matter.

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