Sunday, December 14, 2025 - The Kano State Government has formally outlawed a group operating under the name Independent Hisbah Fisabilillahi, declaring its activities illegal and a threat to public order.
Governor Abba Yusuf signed an executive order proscribing
the group on December 8, following intelligence reports that its operations
violated existing state laws regulating religious enforcement bodies. According
to the government, the group was allegedly recruiting, training and mobilising
youths without legal authority, contrary to the Kano State Hisbah Board Law.
Addressing journalists, the Commissioner for Information and
Internal Affairs, Ibrahim Waiya, said the Kano State Hisbah Board remains the
only institution legally empowered to coordinate Hisbah-related activities in
the state. He warned that the existence of any parallel structure posed serious
security risks.
“The emergence of a parallel group amounts to creating an
unauthorised enforcement structure capable of undermining public peace and the
statutory mandate of the Board,” Waiya said.
He explained that the executive order renders all activities
of the group invalid, stressing that impersonation of the Hisbah Board through
uniforms, symbols or authority would attract sanctions. According to him, the
order declares the group’s activities “unlawful, illegal and void”.
Waiya added that Governor Yusuf has directed security
agencies, including the Nigeria Police Force, the Department of State Services
(DSS), the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) and others, to
investigate those behind the group and take lawful steps to prevent any
breakdown of public order.
He cautioned residents against participating in or
supporting the banned organisation, noting that affiliation with it violates
state law. Individuals already recruited were urged to disengage immediately
and report to the nearest security agency, Hisbah office or local government
authority.
The commissioner further disclosed that the executive order
outlines penalties for offenders, including prosecution for unlawful assembly,
impersonation and the establishment of unauthorised security formations. The
order takes immediate effect and will be gazetted by the state government
printer.
The development follows heightened tensions in Kano over
alleged plans to establish parallel religious policing structures. On November
28, the state government called for the arrest of former governor Abdullahi
Umar Ganduje over remarks it described as “capable of undermining” the state’s
security efforts.
After a state executive council meeting, Waiya said cabinet
members discussed statements attributed to Ganduje and Deputy Senate President
Barau Jibrin concerning Kano’s vulnerability to banditry and a proposal to
recruit 12,000 individuals under a religious policing outfit known as Khairul
Nas.
“The council deliberated extensively over the recent
inflammatory statements made by a former Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje and
the deputy senate president Barau Jibrin, who alleged that the state is
vulnerable to banditry and further announced plans to recruit 12,000
individuals under a proposed religious police outfit named Khairul Nas,” the
commissioner said.
Civil society organizations also weighed in, with the
International Peace and Secure Society (IPSS) expressing concern over reports
of attempts to establish a Hisbah-style body outside state control. The group
described claims linking Ganduje to such efforts as “troubling and unacceptable”.
Ganduje, however, dismissed the allegations, describing the
call for his arrest as “baseless” and “reckless”. The former APC national
chairman said he had never been associated with violence or any act capable of
undermining peace in Kano State.
He further accused the state government of “desperation” and
“incompetence”, adding that the remarks attributed to the administration
amounted to “an abdication of responsibility by a leader who has failed to
secure the lives and property of citizens.”
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