NTC met with authorities of Katsina, the Nigerian state...

NTC met with authorities of Katsina, the Nigerian state that in the year 2000 introduced a "strict" Islamic code and sentenced Amina to death. Endless lines of tankers transport petrol to the northern regions although the smoke emanating from the exhaust pipes gives the impression they are burning it all up on the way. Nigeria has the biggest oil reserves in Africa, and is the world's eighth largest producer, and yet in the northern parts of the country it is hard to spot the well-being such riches should generate. The southern states are the ones to benefit most from the royalties the multinational oil companies pay the federal government. There is no oil- production in the north, but only misery, and religion to hold it at bay. Sharia in northern Nigerian states doubles as an electoral manifesto, governing tool, and, significantly, as a political weapon to blackmail the federal government into allocating them more funding.On our arrival in Katsina city, the state capital, we were immediately faced with a stark reminder of the issue that brought us to Nigeria, and Amina her death sentence.