The Kano State Hisbah Board has announced plans to renew its crackdown on betting shops following a Supreme Court ruling that declared gambling regulation a state matter.
The ruling, delivered on Friday, nullified the 2005 National Lottery Act, which established a federal lottery commission and legalized sports betting and gambling.
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According to the court, regulating gambling falls under the jurisdiction of state governments.
Abba Sufi, the director general of Kano’s Hisbah, stated, “We will resume our clampdown on betting shops with renewed determination since betting is illegal under Kano state sharia law.” The Hisbah is tasked with enforcing sharia law in Kano, one of 12 predominantly Muslim states in northern Nigeria where Islamic law operates alongside federal laws.
Last month, Hisbah operatives raided and shut down several betting shops in the city, citing their promotion of gambling, which is forbidden under Islamic law. However, the raids were suspended after the National Lottery Commission objected, arguing that the 2005 Lottery Act allowed such activities.
“With this verdict, the controversy on who should be in charge of lottery legislation between the federal government and state governments has been settled,” Sufi said. “We in Kano have frowned at the lottery law… because it gave legal backing to gambling which is clearly prohibited in Islam.”
Kano city, northern Nigeria’s largest urban center, is home to around 200 betting shops. These outlets are popular among customers who gather to watch international soccer matches and horse races while placing bets, according to Sydney Emeafu, the head of the National Union of Gaming and Lottery Workers (NUGLOW) in Kano.
Sufi noted that complaints from parents about their children’s involvement in gambling and the impact of economic hardship on residents had prompted the crackdown. “The harsh economic climate is pushing more people into this football gambling, hoping to make easy money and becoming hooked to the vice,” he said
