I Strongly Condemn Deborah's Killing - Says Buhari, Directs Containment Of False News On Social Media

 President Muhammadu Buhari on Friday "strongly condemned" the murder a day earlier of a Christian student, Deborah Samuel who was stoned to death over accusations of blasphemy against the Prophet Muhammad.

An angry mob of students stoned Deborah and burned her body on Thursday in the northwest city of Sokoto after she allegedly made a post on social media they deemed offensive towards the Prophet.

The President said he has directed the "Ministries of Information and Culture, Police Affairs, and Communications and Digital Economy have been directed to work with GSM providers and Tech companies to help contain the spread of false and inflammatory information through social media."

In a statement on Friday, President Buhari said violence has never and will never solve any problem.

The statement read:

I strongly condemn the resort to self-help by the mob in Sokoto, resulting in violence, destruction and in the very tragic killing of Deborah Samuel, following an allegation that she had blasphemed Muhammad (SAW), the Prophet of Islam. 

The news of the killing of the young lady by fellow students is a matter of great concern, and there must be an impartial and extensive probe into all that happened before and during the incident.

Indeed, Muslims all over the world demand respect for the Holy Prophets, including Isah (Alaihissalaam, Jesus Christ) and Muhammad (SAW), but where transgressions occur, as alleged to be the case in this instance, the law does not allow anyone to take matters into their own hands.

Also, religious leaders preach that it is not for the believer to judge the actions of another person. The constituted authority must be allowed to deal with such matters when they arise.

No person has the right to take the law in his or her own hands in this country. Violence has never and will never solve any problem.

I commend the immediate response to the incident by the Sokoto State Government, and urge religious and community leaders to call the attention of citizens to the need to exercise the right to freedom of speech responsibly.

At this time we must emphasize the news for tempered comments by the media, and calm among the general population, while investigation is ongoing to find out the remote and immediate causes of the incident.

The Ministries of Information and Culture, Police Affairs, and Communications and Digital Economy have been directed to work with GSM providers and Tech companies to help contain the spread of false and inflammatory information through social media.

Once again, my deepest condolences to the family of the deceased student, Deborah Samuel.