Two Nigerian TikTokers, Mubarak Isa Muhammad and Muhammad Bala, were arrested last week and have been sentenced to a fine and whipping after they used the social media app to allegedly mock a government official, reported the BBC. The incident took place in Nigeria’s northern Kano State, whose capital is the second most populous city after Lagos.
According to the report, the duo was convicted for defaming the governor of Kano state, Abdullahi Ganduje after they posted a video on Facebook and TikTok in which they mocked the governor for alleged land grabbing, corruption and sleeping while he was at work.
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Their lawyer did not challenge the judgement and they pleaded guilty and requesting for leniency, however, they were both sentenced to pay a 10,000 naira ($23) fine, and clean the court’s premises for a month as well as 20 lashes each. Furthermore, the duo was also ordered to apologize on social media to Ganduje.
The prosecution, attorney Wada Ahmed Wada claimed that the men had defamed the governor and that their actions could disturb public peace. Meanwhile, Mubarak Isa Muhammad and Muhammad Bala’s lawyer told BBC that he did not challenge the verdict since it was a “non-custodial” sentence, which meant that those convicted would not go to be sentenced to imprisonment.
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Notably, Kano State is one of the dozen states in the country that practices Sharia law parallel with the country’s secular laws and only people from the Muslim community can be tried in Sharia courts, said the report.
Amid the growing popularity of the social media platform, particularly among young people, in the country, many have used it to comment on social and political issues including mocking public figures and government officials using snippets of images and videos to often create comedies.
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