The Sokoto State Hisbah Board has dismissed as false and misleading allegations circulating on social media that the religious enforcement agency has imposed restrictions on Christian worship and practices in the state.
The Board’s Commandant, Dr Usman Abdullahi Jatau, made the clarification in a statement issued in Sokoto on Saturday, describing the claims as a deliberate attem pt to distort the agency’s mandate, undermine public confidence and inflame religious sentiments.
The controversy followed social media posts by a blogger identified as @radical.okoja.bia and others, alleging that the Hisbah Board was interfering with Christian worship and imposing rules on how Christians should conduct church services.
Among the claims was that mixed gatherings of men and women were prohibited in churches and that Christian worship services were required to be conducted separately according to gender.
The allegations also claimed that pastors could not sit with their wives during church services and linked the purported restrictions to an alleged plan to Islamise Nigeria, beginning from Sokoto and extending to other parts of the country.
However, Jatau described the allegations as false, insisting that they did not reflect the law establishing the Hisbah Board, its mandate or its activities.
He explained that the law establishing the Sokoto State Hisbah Board, enacted by the state House of Assembly, applies only to Muslims.
According to him, the Board has no legal authority to regulate Christian worship or interfere with the religious practices of adherents of other faiths.
Jatau said the agency could therefore not dictate how Christians conduct church services, organise gatherings, relate with their spouses during worship or practise their faith.
He warned that attributing such restrictions to the Hisbah Board could create unnecessary religious tension and undermine the peaceful coexistence between different faith communities in Sokoto State.
“Our response is not intended to please or offend anybody, but to correct factual inaccuracies, challenge unsupported assertions, and distinguish facts from malicious and fictitious misinterpretations,” Jatau said.
The Commandant maintained that people of different religious backgrounds continue to live and conduct their legitimate activities in Sokoto State.
He urged residents and members of the public to disregard unverified claims on social media and resist attempts to use religion to create distrust, hostility and division.
Jatau also cautioned against linking the Hisbah Board to partisan political narratives, particularly allegations of an organised plan to Islamise Nigeria.
He said such claims had nothing to do with the statutory responsibilities of the agency.
“The blogger should continue his campaign for whichever party he is working for, but should not link the Sokoto State Hisbah Board with his assertions on the political fortune or misfortune of the country,” he said.
The Board urged Nigerians, particularly residents of Sokoto State, to promote peace, unity and mutual respect among religious communities.
It also called for responsible use of social media, warning against spreading unverified information capable of undermining harmonious relations among Nigeria’s diverse religious groups.
