A group of Diaspora Nigerians has called on the United States Government to sanction Nigeria’s Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr. Isa Ali Pantami, for being a proven preacher of jihadi violence and extremism.
In an SOS letter sent to the US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, the group noted that as the US seeks to close the chapter on the Afghani war incited by jihadi terrorism 20 years ago, it has recently come to light that a Nigerian official continues to support extremism.
The group chronicled Pantami’s series of statements, preaching and actions over time that showed his unabashed support for extreme jihadi violence.
“A violent jihadi who once volunteered to lead a jihad in Yelwan Shendam and who is a booster for global jihadists presides over our telecom databases and our sensitive national identity and biometric data,” the letter stated.
It also cited reports that claim that as Chief Imam of the university mosque in 2004 when a group of Christian students embarked on evangelism, Pantami declared it was blasphemous against the Holy Prophet, and issued a FATWA on the five students.
The letter read further: “Muslim students acting under Sheik Pantami’s instruction dragged Mr Sunday Achi from his room and stoned him to death.
“Similarly, ‘in a speech delivered in 2006, Pantami offered his public condolences for the death of the leader of Al-Qaeda in Iraq, al-Zarqawi. May God have mercy on Aḥmad alFāḍil al-Khalayleh, raḥmatullāh’ alayhi. May God forgive his mistakes. He is a human being. He has certainly (made) some mistakes in front of God, so may God forgive his mistakes. Who am I talking about? He is Abū Muṣ‘ab al-Zarqāwī.
“‘He was born in 1966 of the Christian era, that is forty years ago. […] After some time, he was given responsibility for a camp in Herat. It was the Commander of the Faithful (Amīr almu’minīn) Mollah Omar ‒ may God preserve him ‒ who personally gave him the authority to run this camp.’
“The document noted Pantami as further saying, ‘To this date, in the community of the Prophet we have some awesome people, people of awesome faith, who follow the creed of the Sunna and thanks to whom the enemies of God are unable to find rest in this world.
“‘They have killed the Shaykh, the martyr Abdallah Yusuf Azzam ‒ may God have mercy on him ‒ but did the struggle end? They went on to strike Chechnya, and they killed many of them: did it end? […] Whenever one goes, another one comes, and he is even more awesome than the first,’ Pantami added.”
The group also cited Nigerian American Professor, Farooq Kperogi, a muslim and acquaintance of Pantami’s, who wrote that “in a series of reports, complete with audiographic accompaniments, the Peoples Gazette has unearthed sermons by Pantami that amounted to unvarnished homiletic endorsements of terrorism and intolerance of non-Muslims.”
In response to a question about Osama bin Laden’s “killing of innocent unbelievers,” Pantami said although he conceded that Bin Laden was liable to err because he was human, “I still consider him as a better Muslim than myself” and pointed out that “We are all happy whenever unbelievers are being killed.”
It noted that Pantami once offered himself as a volunteer to mobilise the Hisba police of the Muslim-majority states and to be appointed as the ‘commander’ (Hausa: kwamanda) of a militia ready to travel to Yelwa Shendam to join the fight in defence of Muslims.
The speech, which it said is about twenty minutes long, concludes with the prayer: ‘Oh God, give victory to the Taliban and to al-Qaeda’ (Allahumma ’nṣur Ṭālibān wa-tanẓīm al-Qā‘ida).’
It cited many more “indefensible rhetorical endorsements of extremism” in Pantami’s past preaching.
The group’s letter read further: “Mr Secretary, it is unconscionable and repulsive that 20 years after 911, anyone still subscribes to Al Qaeda’s evil ideology least of all a top official of a US partner like Nigeria.
“Last year the US banned immigration from Nigeria citing terror risks stemming from identity management incompetence. Although the new administration reversed the ban this year, the big concern is that Sheikh Pantami is a risk factor as a key actor in Nigeria’s security data management.”
The group said there is speculation currently in Nigeria that Pantami is on a US terror list, adding that if he is not, he should be, as “he is over-qualified for a spot on the US visa ban list for inciters of egregious religious violence and persecution.
“We ask that he and others of his ilk be immediately sanctioned.”
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