Kukah to Tinubu: Adoption of Sharia Law in the North Is Dubious, Must Be Reviewed
Matthew Hassan Kukah, the Catholic bishop of the Diocese of Sokoto, has urged President Bola Tinubu to file a lawsuit against the 12 northern governments that have adopted Sharia law, calling it unconstitutional and harmful to national unity.
Speaking at the opening of the ACIN 2025 World Report on Religious Freedom in the World, “A Plea and Testimony from Nigeria,” Kukah claimed that the country’s bloodshed and religious extremism had been exacerbated by the application of Sharia law alongside democracy.
“Under the pretense of blasphemy laws, state agents have watched for years as people took the law into their own hands, destroying churches and killing Christians, as well as innocent citizens of both faiths,” he stated. Islamist elements interpreted the questionable decision of 12 northern states to implement Sharia law in a democracy in 2000 as an indication that Islam was gaining ground. Change is required.
In order to stop the rising trend of mob justice throughout the nation, he urged President Tinubu to ask the courts to rule that the implementation of Sharia law is illegal. Kukah mentioned the murders of Deborah Samuel in Sokoto and Bridget Agbahime in Kano as instances of how innocent people are still killed by the abuse of blasphemy laws.
He emphasized that “the secular state that the Constitution envisions must be implemented.”
Bishop Kukah also issued a warning against labeling Nigeria a “country of concern” with regard to religious freedom, stating that although the country has difficulties, efforts at peace and development would be better served by constructive engagement rather than criticism.