Page 145 - Aesthetic Formations Media, religion, and the Sense

130 Brian Larkin

In 1977 leaders of Tijaniyya and Qadiriyya in all northern states signed
a joint letter to the Managing Director of Radio Kaduna, Dahiru Modibbo,
attacking their patronage of Gumi. “We, the undermentioned leaders of
the Tijaniyya and Kadiriyya sects of the northern States have enough
patient [sic] for the last five (5) weary years in the way and manner you are
playing or putting tafsir recorded from Alhaji Abubakar Gumi which is
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abusive, deformative [sic] to us and making all of us pagans (KAFIRAI).”
The letter goes on to chastise the radio station for their complicity in
Gumi’s attacks. “We have 27 recorded cassettes made by Alhaji Abubakar
Gumi which was played through your media all abusive and deformed [sic]
to us and the sects.” The letter was written “in the name of peace and sta-
bility” that was a veiled reference to the fact that violent confrontations
had been breaking out regularly between Sufis and followers of Gumi even
leading to several assassination attempts of Gumi’s life (Gumi 1992; Kane
2003; Umar 1993).
In the context of Northern Nigerian Islam this letter is almost unprec-
edented. For much of the twentieth century the Tijaniyya and Qadiriyya
had been bitter opponents but in Gumi they were faced by a frontal assault
on Sufism as a whole. Modibbo responded assuring the leaders that the
radio station had no intention of promoting one branch of Islam over
another. He recommended the orders choose one mallam who would alter-
nate with Gumi during Ramadan (forcing them to decide which mallam
that would be). After debate the orders chose a powerful Tijani orator,
Dahiru Bauci, and arranged for him to move to Kaduna in order to coun-
ter the influence of Gumi.
The intensity of the controversy over tafsir broadcasts meant that the
Director of Radio Kaduna, Dahiru Modibbo, had to initiate a policy
designed to maintain the peace. He instructed mallams to use a neutral
mode of exegesis in which they would stick to explaining the Qur’an and
refrain from attacking other Muslims. This proved to be difficult to insti-
tute for two reasons. First, Sufi followers viewed the radio station as a
Gumi stronghold biased in his favor that had attacked them and they
wanted space to attack Gumi back. Second, they were largely right in that
Gumi had massive support within the radio station and was seen by most

Hausa media professionals as simply correct in his interpretation of Islam.
Halilu Getso who worked at Radio Kaduna at the time said many of the
top people were followers of Gumi long before he even came onto the
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radio. This partiality was recognized by Modibbo who wrote to the head
of programs in charge of the tafsir broadcast after violent confrontations
between Izala and Sufi followers broke out in Jos and Kaduna in 1977:
“Some two weeks ago I gave definite instructions that our Tafsir transmis-
sions must not contain references to any sects that could reasonably be