Islamic rights group warns foreign interference in Nigeria’s Shari’ah and hisbah could undermine counter-terrorism efforts and national sovereignty.

By Sadiq Abdulfatah

The Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) has issued a stern warning to the United States against interfering in Nigeria’s Shari’ah and hisbah institutions.

The group described calls by a foreign policy analyst urging the US to pressure President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to abolish Shari’ah as “crossing the red line,” emphasizing that any such attempt could threaten national unity, democratic values, and ongoing counter-terrorism cooperation.

The press release reads:

NO TO US INVOLVEMENT IN NIGERIA’S SHARI’AH MATTERS– MURIC

‎‎A Senior Fellow of the Council on Foreign Relations, Dr. Ebenezer Obadare, has urged the United States to pressurize President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to outlaw Shari’ah and the hisbah.

‎‎However, an islamic human rights organization, the Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC), has rejected the call. In a statement issued on Thursday, 4th December, 2025 by its Executive Director, Professor Ishaq Akintola, the group described Obadare’s call as crossing the red line. It also added that the call raises more questions than answers about the intention of the United States.

‎‎The statement continues:

‎”A Senior Fellow of the Council on Foreign Relations, Dr. Ebenezer Obadare, has urged the United States to pressurize President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to outlaw Shari’ah and the hisbah.

‎”The call was made during a joint House briefing in response to US President Donald Trump’s directive and designation of Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern.

‎‎”This call raises more questions than answers and casts doubts on the intention of the United States in its interest in Nigeria’s war on terror. It amounts to surrendering Nigeria’s sovereignty. It constitutes an affront on the Nigerian constitution, our grund norm. It is therefore a no go area for either the US or the Nigerian government.

‎‎”Obadare’s call is mischievous, reactionary and outlandish. It is also undemocratic, neocolonial and imperialistic. As usual, Nigerian Christians who opposed the Shari’ah ab initio and were defeated in due process have now gone through the backdoor to use the US to abolish it. It will not happen. Obadare’s approach is not only cowardly, it is immoral and despicable.

‎‎”Shari’ah is the Muslims’ way of life. It cannot be separated ftom Islam. We fought hard to establish it and its foundation is deeply entrenched in legality, constitutionality and democratic values. The moment anyone attempts to touch our Shari’ah, we begin to see him seeking to eliminate Islam in its totality. Our advise is this: don’t go there. It is the red line.

‎‎”The greatest challenge our government will face when it starts tampering with Shari’ah is that it will lose the support of liberal and mainstream Muslims who have been opposing the terrorists. Ditto for the hisbah.

‎‎”The United States in particular must not allow doubts to be cast in its interest in Nigeria’s war on terror. Is the US fighting terror or fighting Islam? This is a critical question for a Western power that has declared its intention to protect Nigerian Christians.

‎‎”Nigerian Muslims will continue to support President Tinubu in his war on terrorist groups as long as there are clear lines of demarcation. But Nigerian Muslims are not fools. The story will definitely change if any government, local or foreign, makes any attempt to outlaw our hard earned Shari’ah.

‎‎”Every nation has its own legitimate institutions. Democracy itself has no particular tabula rasa. The system of government which is approved by the people is its own democracy. Interestingly, Shari’ah is an integral part of our system and it was not introduced by force. Something terrible has gone wrong the moment a government starts tampering with the Constitution to favour a minority group.

‎‎”Any attempt to tie the Shari’ah to the war against terrorism will cost both the US and the Nigerian government the cooperation of Nigerian Muslims in all spheres. That is when we will see an existential threat with microscopic accuracy.

Obadare’s call has crossed the red line. The call also raises more questions than answers about the intention of the United States in the war against terrorism. Is the US fighting terror or fighting Islam? That is our question.”

Source: MURIC