A former Grand Kadi of Kwara State Sharia Court of Appeal, Justice AbdulMuttalib Ahmad Ambali (retd) is dead

He died in the wee hours of Thursday at the University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital (UITH), Oke-Oyi, after a brief illness.

He was 83 years old.

The late jurist was the 2nd Grand Kadi after late justice Abdulkadir Orire, and pioneer Chief Registrar of Kwara State Sharia Court of Appeal.

He spent seven years in office as Grand Kadi from 2001 – 2008.

In a telephone chat with Daily Trust Thursday morning, the Grand Kadi of Kwara State, Justice Abdullateef Kamaldeen who confirmed the incident, described the deceased as a God-fearing Muslim scholar and competent jurist who upheld the tenet of Islam in everything he did.

Justice Kamaldeen said, “The fact that he died during Ramadan was significant and we asked Almighty Allah to forgive him and grant him Aljanat Firdous.”

He described the deceased as “gentle, unassuming, religious and a man of policy and principle who doesn't take anybody for granted.”

“He was always focus. Indeed, Kwara has lost a top scholar and jurist. He was everything to me, my role model and mentor,” Justice Kamaldeen added.

Speaking on his last moments, Justice Kamaldeen said the deceased's journey to meet Allah started on Sunday.

“This is just four days illness. He was at a meeting last Sunday at Ansarul Islam being the chairman of the Board of Trustees (BoT) around 11:00am and left around 3pm.

“We discussed about getting visa for the Arabs in Ilorin whose stay in Nigeria is about to end and how we were going to get another one for them. Our discussion also touch on what we were going to present to them as Ramadan gift and the proposed Kalamdeen University before he left.

“Suddenly when he got home around 5:00pm that Sunday according to his wife, he was rushed to the hospital complaining of running stomach.

“From Olalomi hospital, we took him to the University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital (UITH) and admitted him at the trauma centre.

“I was there four days ago and also yesterday (Wednesday) before I left around 1:30am this morning and first went to drop his wife in GRA only to get home trying to rest when his wife called me and broke the news”, he added.