The Secretary-General of the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA), Prof Is-haq Oloyede, has urged leaders in the South-West geopolitical zone to support the establishment of Sharia panels in the six states of the zone.
According to him, the establishment of Sharia panels, which are essentially committees of Islamic scholars set up to settle marriage and inheritance disputes, will foster sustainable peace in the zone.
Oloyede, who is also the Registrar of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), was a guest on the Sunday edition of Inside Sources with Laolu Akande, a socio-political programme aired on Channels Television.
He said Nigerian “leaders should have a rethink. For sustainable peace, there is nothing bad in Muslims having” Sharia courts in the South-West.
Of late, the proposed establishment of Sharia panels in states like Ogun, Oyo, and others in the South-West has triggered disquiet in the zone with traditional institutions and the Christian community rejecting the move while state governments in Ogun and Oyo have also ruled out the idea. But despite the pushbacks, the Muslim community in Nigeria and the NSCIA led by the Sultan of Sokoto, Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar, have stressed the importance of the panels as an alternative dispute resolution mechanism for Muslims.
