The Nigerian Bar Association ((NBA)) has condemned a ruling by a Kano magistrate court that ordered two popular TikTok content creators to marry each other within 60 days.
The controversial order stems from the arrest of Idris Mai Wushirya and Basira Yar Guda, by the Kano State Censorship Board after videos of them, which the board deemed “immoral and demeaning acts,” went viral on social media.
The board argued that the clips, which showed a shirtless Wushirya displaying affectionate behavior toward Yar Guda, violated state laws against obscene and sexually suggestive content.
Halima Wali, the magistrate, in her ruling on Monday, directed the Hisbah board to oversee the marriage process and warned that failure to comply within the 60-day period would amount to contempt of court.
In a statement issued via social media on Tuesday, reaction, Afam Osigwe, NBA president, lambasted the court’s directive as unconstitutional.
He maintained that marriage is a voluntary union that cannot be imposed by the state.
He described the decision as an “affront to fundamental rights” and a “grave misunderstanding of judicial authority”.
