Alhaji Muhammad Abubakar, the Sultan of Sokoto, has been cautioned by some Yoruba youths operating under the auspices of Yoruba Nation Youths not to advocate for the creation of Sharia courts in the South-West.
Their counsel comes after any attempt to impose Sharia law in Yorubaland was denounced by the Ogun State administration and Gani Adams, the Aare Ona Kakanfo of Yorubaland.
The youths said in a statement that the new law was a deliberate attempt to incite a fight in Yorubaland and cautioned the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA) against intruding on the territory.
The group’s leaders in Nigeria and the diaspora, Prophet Ayodele Ologunloluwa and Oyegunle Omotoyole, respectively, described the action as just another Hausa/Fulani strategy to enslave and control the Yoruba by any means.
They said, “The Fulanisation agenda to conquer our land is not hidden, and they are using every method in the book to work towards perfecting the agenda. We do not want our monarchs and governors in the South-West to be deceived by the so-called Sharia law/court by whatever method they may be using.
“We say no to Sharia law or courts in Yorubaland. This Sharia law scheme is hypocritical. We don’t need it in Yorubaland. We, the Yoruba, reject anything that would affect our culture, tradition, and lifestyle.
“We Yoruba youths both home and diaspora like to caution you on your latest antics to renew your grand 1804 design to conquer the entire Yorubaland by trying to establish Sharia law in our homeland.”
In a statement issued by Governor Dapo Abiodun, the Ogun State administration stated, “No Sharia Court is authorised to operate within Ogun State. The courts that are legally empowered to adjudicate disputes arising within Ogun State are those established by the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria or by state laws, which are: Magistrates’ Courts, High Court, Customary Courts, Customary Court of Appeal, Federal High Court, National Industrial Court, Court of Appeal, and Supreme Court.
“No law operating in Ogun State has established a Sharia Court, and Sharia law does not form part of the legal framework by which the Ogun State government administers and governs society.”
Adams emphasised that the implementation of Sharia was intended by religious zealots to destabilise Yorubaland during his speech at the 2025 Oodua celebration in Osun.
He said, “Sharia law is alien to our culture and religious beliefs in Yorubaland, therefore those religious fanatics masquerading as Muslims should stay away from acts that could set Yorubaland on fire.”