Sokoto-based Islamic scholar Sheikh Musa Lukuwa led his followers in Eid al-Fitr prayers on Thursday, going against Sultan Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar III’s official declaration of Friday as the Sallah day.
The two-unit Eid prayer was held at Lukuwa’s Mabera mosque around 9:10 a.m., hours after the Sultan announced that the Shawwal crescent moon had not been sighted anywhere in Nigeria, effectively extending Ramadan by one day.
Lukuwa justified his decision in a social media message, citing confirmed moon sightings in neighbouring Niger Republic.
“Niger Republic is very close to us — about 100 kilometres away. If we accept reports from cities like Kano or even Lagos, which are farther away, there is no reason to reject confirmed sightings from a neighbouring country,” he said.
He stressed that his action was based on religious conviction, not an attempt to undermine the Sultan’s authority.
“We usually follow the Sultan’s directive in starting and ending Ramadan. However, when it is clear that the moon has been sighted, we must act in accordance with the teachings of the Prophet, even if it differs from the Sultan’s declaration,” Lukuwa explained.
Providing historical context, he recalled the era of Abubakar Mahmoud Gummi, when prominent scholars independently announced moon sightings before the practice was centralized under the Sultan to promote unity among Muslims.
Lukuwa maintained that the Sultan’s decision this time was mistaken and reportedly informed his congregants around midnight, instructing them to assemble for Eid prayers on Thursday morning.
