The Sultan of Sokoto, Muhammadu Sa’ad Abubakar, has reaffirmed that banditry, terrorism and other forms of criminality have no place in Islam, stressing that crime should never be linked to any religion or ethnic group.
The Sultan, who is also the President-General of the Nigeria Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA), made the remarks while receiving members of the 2026 Batch ‘B’ Stream I of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) at his palace in Sokoto.
He described Islam as a religion founded on peace, justice and respect for the sanctity of human life, noting that the faith forbids the killing of innocent people and encourages peaceful coexistence with people of other religions through compassion, mutual understanding and good neighbourliness.
The traditional ruler condemned the growing practice of attributing criminal activities to specific ethnic or religious groups, insisting that offenders should simply be identified as criminals.
“Give them their proper name, criminals. Don’t call them Fulani, Tiv, Yoruba, Muslim or Christian. Criminality has no religion or ethnicity. Evil people exist everywhere and should be treated as such,” he said.
Addressing the corps members, the Sultan urged them to remain security-conscious throughout their service year, respect the customs and traditions of their host communities, and make meaningful contributions to national development.
He also advised them to disregard negative stereotypes about Sokoto State, assuring them that they would experience the hospitality and peaceful nature of its people.
The Sultan further cautioned the corps members against spreading unverified information on social media, urging them to confirm the authenticity of reports before believing or sharing them.
“If you amplify only negative stories and ignore the good happening around you, you help evil to thrive. But when you tell the truth about what you have seen, you help humanity,” he said.
Reiterating his position, the Sultan said criminals come from different ethnic and religious backgrounds, adding that once an individual commits a crime, their identity should simply be that of a criminal.
“Whether a criminal bears a Christian name, a Muslim name, a Yoruba name, a Fulani name, a Hausa name or any other name is immaterial. Once you commit crime, you are simply a criminal,” he stated.
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