Story from Khadija Abdullahi JIKA, Abuja
As news continued to spread on the purported marriage between the Chief of the Air Staff, Sadique Baba Abubakar, and the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Sadiya Umar Faruk, a Voice of America (VOA Hausa) report has quoted a close friend of the Air Chief of describing the report as false.
It was reported that Sadique and Sadiya got married in a mosque located in the Maitama highbrow area of Abuja on September 18.
However, VOA Hausa reported that when contacted on the matter, senior Air Force officers in Abuja said they were not aware of the marriage.
“Even an intimate friend of the Air boss, who was in charge of his affairs, said he had inquired from his friend, the Chief of Air Staff, and he told him the story was a fallacy,” the report said.
A public commentator, Mohammed Usman, told VOA that it won’t be a surprise if the duo decided to marry secretly. “They are adults; they may decide to marry secretly in this period of the pandemic to observe the protocol. Again, they are not children, they are senior citizens. “But where the proverbial spider spins its cobweb was that Sadique has denied this marriage with the minister.
“So, we should be careful. Rumours shouldn’t be peddled, especially by media outlets that the public relied upon with confidence,” he said.
According to the VOA, associates of the minister who were contacted said they will not comment because they were not aware of such marriage took place. In a related development, an Islamic scholar, Sheikh, told Vanguard that the religion of Islam does not encourage secret marriage.
“Marriage should be publicized and celebrated. That is why even light beating of drums is allowed during a marriage,” he said.
