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Peeved by the reported move to introduce Sharia law in South-West, traditional leaders in the region have warned that any attempt to initiate such a law will cause anarchy, division, and instability.

According to them, Sharia law, in any form, is unsuitable for Yorubaland.

Earlier, PUNCH Online reported that a flier went viral on Tuesday, inviting guests from across the country to the inauguration of a Sharia court scheduled for January 11, 2025, at the Muslim Community Islamic Centre, Oba Adeyemi High School Road, Mobolaje Area, Oyo.

The flier listed the Bashorun of Oyo Land, High Chief Yusuf Akinade Olayinka I, as the Royal Father of the Day; the Mufairu of Oyo Land, Alhaji Abdullateef Eleyele, as the Spiritual Father of the Day; and the Aare Musulumi of Oyo Land, Alhaji Tajudeen Kamorise, as the Chief Host.

However, the event drew criticism from a cross-section of Nigerians, with many arguing that the predominantly Yoruba South-West is distinct from the northern region, where Muslims are in the majority.

In 2021, the President of the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria, Bishop Wale Oke, cautioned the Senate against covert attempts by certain groups to introduce Sharia law to the South-West through the ongoing constitution review.

In response, the Director of the Muslim Rights Concern, Ishaq Akintola, urged the PFN to “mind its business and stop opposing Muslims’ right to operate Shariah.”

The push for Sharia law in the region faced resistance and was ultimately dismissed at the time.

Addressing the recent call for the introduction of Sharia law in the South-West, Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde acknowledged the proposed Sharia court and the controversy it had sparked.

“Regarding the establishment of a Sharia court in Oyo town, people may try, but as for me, I swore to uphold our laws and the Constitution of Nigeria. If their actions are within the law, fine; if not, they should expect that I will insist the law must be followed,” the governor stated in a broadcast.

Meanwhile, the announcement has ignited heated debates, with critics warning that introducing a Sharia court could disrupt the state’s religious harmony.

Rejecting the proposal, the Aare Ona Kakanfo of Yorubaland, Gani Adams, told Saturday PUNCH that introducing Sharia law in Oyo State would create significant problems.

He argued that implementing Sharia law in Yorubaland, a multi-religious region, would be extremely challenging.

“I am not against Sharia law; it is a good law. But it is easier to implement in the North. Even in the North, Sharia law is not deeply enforced in the Middle Belt, because the majority there are Christians.

“We have been running the South-West with the modern constitution, promoting coexistence among religions. We do not want religion to divide us,” Adams stated.

He advised the Oyo State Government to tread carefully, as religion is a sensitive issue in Yoruba land.

Gani Adams added, “Sharia law has been in place in the 19 northern states of Nigeria, based on the penal code. Since Nigeria’s inception, the southern part has been using the modern Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. For anyone to want Sharia law introduced to Yorubaland is to plan for division, disunity, and anarchy.”

He highlighted the region’s unique social fabric, saying, “In Yorubaland, there is intermarriage; you’ll see a Muslim marrying a Christian, and a Christian marrying a traditionalist. I was born a Muslim. Today, I am a Muslim, Christian, and traditionalist. We do not define ourselves based on religion.”

He also noted that in Oyo State, the Muslim and Christian populations were almost equal, as they were in Ogun and Lagos states, whereas Christians remained the majority in Ondo and Ekiti states.

Also speaking with Saturday PUNCH, the Olugbon of Orile-Igbon in Oyo State, Oba Francis Alao, Akinbola I, noted that the type of religion practised in northern Nigeria was not applicable in the southern part.

He explained that in the South-West, people drank alcohol, which is prohibited by Sharia law, and enforcing such a law would be anti-people.

The monarch stated, “This will not work in Yorubaland. Our strength is our social life. If we accept Sharia law, how many people will conform to it? This will later bring chaos and instability. It will also interfere with the peaceful coexistence in Yoruba land.”

He added, “This will not work in the South-West because of our way of life. I don’t foresee Sharia law happening now. Our diversity in religion is our strength. Irrespective of our religions, what matters most is that we live in unity and love. I don’t have anything against any religion as long as the public accepts it. The government needs to carry the people along and sample their opinions.”

The Eselu of Iselu kingdom, in Yewa North LGA of Ogun State, Oba Akintunde Akinyemi, kicked against Sharia law in the South West and called on other traditional rulers in Yorubaland to reject it.

He said, “Nigeria is a multi-religion country for Muslims, Christians and traditionalists, so bringing Sharia to Oyo and the South West is imposing a religion on others and we have to respect ourselves.

“It is a way of fueling an unnecessary crisis in the South West. We have enough problems already in the region; we should not allow religion to bring another civil war into this country.

“The constitution of the country should be paramount to all of us, including traditional rulers; they should not bring religious law into the constitution of the country. Everybody should rise against this, irrespective of religion.”

Law threatens secularity – CAN

The President of the Christian Association of Nigeria, Daniel Okoh, said the Christian body was working on a reaction to the matter.

He said, “We are working on it. At the appropriate time, we’ll come out with our position.”

But the Oyo State Chairman of CAN, Apostle Joshua Akinyemiju, dismissed the initiative, describing it as unconstitutional and a threat to the state’s secular nature.

He stated, “This should not happen in Oyo State, where Christians and Muslims coexist in nearly every family. There’s no law to support this, and the government is not aware. We won’t allow anything that jeopardises the peaceful coexistence we enjoy.”

It’s not a court – Shari’ah committee

Amid the growing tension, the organisers of the event postponed the inauguration indefinitely.

Speaking to Saturday PUNCH, the Chairman of the Sharia Committee of Oyo land, Rafiu Bello, said he had nothing further to add.

In a statement shared with our correspondent, the committee clarified that it was not inaugurating a Sharia court, but an arbitration panel.

The statement read in part, “The postponement is informed by the inadvertent reference to the programme as the inauguration ceremony of a Sharia Court in Oyo town and its environs instead of the Independent Sharia Arbitration Panel.

“Such an arbitration panel, which already exists in many parts of the South-West, is only meant to settle family disputes among willing Muslims, without any power of enforcement. It is not a court.”

The statement concluded by noting that a new date would be announced for the inauguration ceremony.

Also, an Islamic cleric and lecturer of Islamic Studies at the Lagos State University, Ojo, Dr Sidiq Uthman, explained that the establishment of a Sharia court was intended to allow Muslims to resolve their issues in accordance with Sharia principles.

He clarified that such a court would only be relevant for committed Muslims.

He said, “The court is a place where Muslim families can come for adjudication or reconciliation in matters of inheritance, divorce, or child custody. These are the issues they want to address, not what is being sensationalised on social media. This has nothing to do with any religion. When they wanted to introduce Islamic banking, it was the same misunderstanding that people thought it was about Islamising Nigeria. Everyone has the right to practise their religion, and there’s freedom of association.”

Similarly, the National President of the Islamic group, Jamaat Taawunil Muslimeen, Sheikh Daood Imran, emphasised that Sharia law is a system Muslims use to settle disputes within their community.

He said, “There are three groups of believers in Nigeria: Muslims, Christians, and traditionalists, each with their own belief systems. This is not a court. The Christians own the High Court, traditionalists own the Customary Court, and Muslims follow Sharia law.”

Credit: PUNCH