Former Senator representing Kaduna central, Shehu Sani has faulted Kano state Hisbah over their warning issued to a radio station on promoting Black Friday in their broadcast.
On Friday, the Kano State Hisbah Command has barred a radio station in Kano from using the term ‘Black Friday’ to promote sales and give people cheap offers in its broadcasts.
But the former senator on his Twitter handle said the call is nonsensical adding that the Hisbah should focus on killings and kidnappings going on in the North.
“Friday is our sacred day of prayer as Muslims. Whatever colour is added to it doesn’t matter. Hisbah’s threats against the phrase’Black Friday’ is nonsensical.
“They should focus on the killings and kidnappings going on in their domains.Their services are needed in the battlefield,” the tweet added.
The Sharia police had said it would monitor the Black Friday sales in the state to ensure compliance.
The command, in a letter signed by Abubakar Ali on behalf of the Commander General and addressed to the station manager of Cool FM, requested the media house to stop the act with immediate effect, adding that Kano people consider Friday as a holy day.
“I am directed to write and notify you that the office is in receipt of complaint about the conduct of Black Friday Sales on 27th November, 2020.
“Accordingly, we wish to express our concern on the tagging of the Friday as “Black Friday” we want to further inform you that majority of the inhabitants of Kano state are Muslims that consider Friday as Holy Day.
“In view of the foregoing you are requested to stop calling the day as Black Friday with immediate effect and note that Hisbah corps will be around for surveillance purpose with a view to avoiding occurrence of any immoral activities as well as maintaining peace, harmony and stability in the state,” the letter said.
The letter, which is already in circulation across social media, is already among the trending topics on Twitter.
Efforts to get the Hisbah PRO’s reactions to the letter and the controversy it has generated has been unsuccessful.
Several phone calls and a text message sent to him were unanswered.
However, the BBC Pidgin quoted the Commander General of the Sharia police, Sheik Harun Ibn Sina, as saying that the command only advised the radio station against the use of the term ‘Black Friday’ and did not bar them from using it, acknowledging that the command does not have the legal backing to issue such an order against the radio station.
He also told the BBC that it decided to monitor the sales to avoid the repeat of immoral acts that were recorded last year.
Ibn Sina, was quoted to have said that the commanded noted some young men who took the advantage of the rush for Black Friday sales to rub their bodies with female counterparts, an act he said the command frowns at.
