Imam Removed After Campaigning For Tinubu At Bauchi Mosque

The management committee of the Abdullahi Bin Zubbair Mosque in the Madina quarters of Bauchi metropolis has removed its chief imam, Dahiru Abubakar, for allegedly using the pulpit to campaign for President Bola Tinubu’s 2027 re-election bid.

The cleric was suspended following his sermon after the early morning (Subhi) prayer on Sunday, October 18, 2026, during which he reportedly urged congregants to support the President’s second-term mandate.

According to worshippers, the imam routinely informed congregants after obligatory prayers that the current economic hardship and widespread insecurity facing the nation were not caused by President Tinubu, but were manifestations of end-time prophecies.

Defending his actions to newsmen, Abubakar confirmed that his sermons focused on advising citizens to stop criticizing the President, maintaining that global economic challenges require divine intervention and national prayers rather than political condemnation.

My preaching centred on telling people to embrace fear of God and stop blaming leaders for the insecurity, particularly President Tinubu, because only God’s intervention can stop the challenges with the power of prayers, and that didn’t go down well with the committee of the mosque, the dismissed cleric stated.

I cited examples of what is happening, especially insecurity in African countries like Sudan, Chad, Mali and others facing crisis. I asked whether President Tinubu was responsible for their insecurity, he added, insisting that voters should prepare to renew Tinubu’s mandate in 2027.

Confirming the dismissal, the Chairman of the Mosque Committee, Imam Abubakar Jibrin, disclosed that the committee decided to relieve the cleric of his duties after he repeatedly disregarded warnings against converting the house of worship into a political venue.

The mosque committee sat down with him and cautioned him against turning the mosque to a political platform because of the Quranic verse which says the Mosque is solemnly for worship of Allah alone, Jibrin explained.

The committee chairman further revealed that the former imam went as far as attempting to rename the community facility from Abdullahi Bin Zubbair Mosque to Masjid Imam Bola Ahmed Tinubu, a proposal unanimously rejected by the leadership.

All the committee members said ‘no’ because the mosque belongs to the community… He should go and build his personal mosque, or politicians should go buy a mosque for him; that is not our business, Jibrin stated, confirming that the decision to remove the cleric is final.

Jibrin emphasized that the mosque management maintains political neutrality and is not opposed to any political candidate, adding that religious spaces must remain dedicated strictly to spiritual devotion rather than partisan politics.