A coalition of civil rights and faith-based organisations has condemned renewed calls for the expansion of Sharia law in Nigeria, describing the move as unconstitutional and a grave threat to national unity.
Operating under the umbrella of End Sharia Now, the coalition includes One Nation One Law, Global Network of Christian Faith and Truth, and Love a Muslim Ministry.
In a statement signed by Benson Sunday, the coalition said attempts to institutionalise Sharia beyond personal faith practice violate the 1999 Constitution, particularly Sections 10 and 42, which prohibit the adoption of a state religion and guarantee equality before the law.
“The Constitution is supreme. Any law inconsistent with it is void,” the group stressed.
The coalition faulted the continued operation of Sharia penal codes in some northern states, linking them to rising incidents of mob justice, blasphemy killings, and corporal punishments that erode human dignity and fuel sectarian division.
It cited the killing of Deborah Samuel in Sokoto (2022) and the recent mob execution of a woman in Niger State as disturbing examples of the dangers of enforcing religious codes through state authority.
Expressing concern over reports that Sultan of Sokoto, Muhammadu Sa’ad Abubakar III, recently supported the creation of Sharia arbitration panels in Oyo and Ekiti States, the coalition warned that such moves could erode Nigeria’s secular identity and constitutional order.
While acknowledging Muslims’ right to practise their faith, the coalition maintained that using state power to enforce religious laws breaches Nigeria’s secular principles and violates global human rights treaties such as the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW).
The coalition urged the National Assembly to restrict Sharia jurisdiction strictly to personal matters for consenting Muslims and consider removing constitutional provisions establishing Sharia Courts of Appeal.
It also called for broader human rights education, interfaith dialogue, and enforcement of secular values to safeguard Nigeria’s democracy and unity.