Members of the Islamic Movement in Nigeria, also known as ‘Shiites’ on Monday in Kaduna, took to the streets to protest the continued detention of their leader, Sheikh Ibraheem El-Zakzaky and his wife, Zeenat.

Both had been in detention for about five years, following the clash between the Nigerian Army and the Shiites in Zaria, Kaduna State in December 2015, which led to the killing of several members of the IMN.

They also said the protest was in remembrance of the clash, which they described as a massacre.

The members carried placards with inscriptions such as ‘free Zakzaky’, ‘We want justice’, ‘He needs to go for medical treatment’, as well as ‘Free our leader’.

They (women, children as well as adults) were spotted marching through the Kano road area of the metropolis.

The leader of the protesters, Sheikh Aliyu Tirmizi, demanded the unconditional release of the IMN leader for proper medical attention.

He said,

In the aftermath of Zaria genocide executed by the Nigerian military in December 2015, we have been calling on all citizens to uphold the dictum that injustice to one is injustice to all, but to no avail.

Most people, after the gross flagrant abuse of power by the military on Sheikh Zakzaky and his followers couldn’t express their condemnation, choosing to remain silent since the military excesses didn’t affect them directly.

But in truth, Islam abhors injustice, and enjoins Muslims to express disdain to injustice and the unjust whoever they are. Indeed history is full of instances when Prophet Muhammad (SAWA) assisted the victims of injustice in upholding their rights.

This explains why for the past five years, we have been explaining how this Buhari regime has trampled upon the rights of Sheikh Zakzaky and his followers, demanding that citizens condemn this repression, and call for the release of our leader unconditionally.

Justin Nwosu

Justin Nwosu is the founder and publisher of Flavision. His core interest is in writing unbiased news about Nigeria in particular and Africa in general. He’s a strong adherent of investigative journalism, with a bent on exposing corruption, abuse of power and societal ills.