Attempts to Abolish Sharia in the North: Inevitable Failure and a Path to National Division

28 February, 2026
by Mohammed Bello Doka 

Nigeria is on the brink of explosion, and the reckless crusaders pushing to abolish Sharia in the North are lighting the fuse!

Just days ago, on February 10, 2026, US lawmakers Reps. Chris Smith and Riley Moore dropped their bombshell—H.R. 7457, the so-called “Nigeria Religious Freedom and Accountability Act”—demanding reports, aid cuts, sanctions, and outright repeal of Sharia criminal and blasphemy laws. Then came the Ndi Igbo Worldwide Union, that shadowy Igbo pressure group, rushing to back them with fire. In their explosive February 27 statement signed by President Benjamin I. Nwankwo and Secretary Chief Charles Edemuzo, they declared the Nigerian state “no longer sustainable,” slammed the “official hypocrisy” of keeping two legal systems, warned of an “ultimate test,” and issued an ultimatum: remove Sharia from the Constitution or let the North become a sovereign Islamic enclave like the UAE—or watch the federation crumble!

This is not concern. This is naked imposition!

The Supreme Council for Shari’ah in Nigeria (SCSN) has already fired back with thunder: “No power or authority can arrogantly make Muslims relinquish its practice in response to external pressure, misinformation, or political intimidation.” Sharia is not some optional dress code—it is the comprehensive divine way of life for millions of Nigerian Muslims, spiritually, morally, socially, and legally protected by our own 1999 Constitution under Sections 275–279 and the sacred guarantee of religious freedom in Section 38.

Any attempt to force its abolition will fail catastrophically—and it will tear Nigeria apart!

Let us expose the hypocrisy in all its disgusting glory. While these Igbo groups and evangelical Christians in the South scream for the North to drop Sharia, what are they doing in their own backyard? They wallow in alcohol-soaked bars, feast on pigs without shame, gamble away their futures in lottery shops and betting houses, and cling to their Judeo-Christian worldview as if it is the only path to heaven. The North does not send armies to ban your beer parlours. We do not storm your churches demanding you stop eating pork or shut down your casinos. We mind our business! Yet these same hypocrites now dare to dictate that Muslim-majority states must abandon the divine law that has guided their lives for centuries.

Fix your own mess first!

Remember the South’s own dark history of repugnant customs—the very “archaic laws” they now pretend never existed while pointing fingers at the North. In Igboland, twins were slaughtered at birth as evil omens. The Osu caste system turned human beings into untouchable slaves for life, denied marriage, land, and dignity. Daughters and widows were robbed of inheritance under male-only primogeniture—barbaric rules struck down only by our own Supreme Court in cases like Mojekwu v. Mojekwu (1997). Childless men practised nrachi, keeping daughters as breeding machines to produce sons for the lineage. Widows endured horrific rites—drinking corpse water, sleeping beside dead bodies, shaving heads, sitting on ashes, eating from broken plates. Woman-to-woman marriages confused lineage and paternity. Secret societies like Ekpe unleashed masquerade terror and extrajudicial punishment. Yoruba and Benin kings were buried with living retainers, slaves, and yes—virgins and young women sacrificed to serve them in the afterlife! These were not minor taboos; they were systemic horrors.

The South reformed these abominations internally—through courts, Christianity, education, and Nigerian law. No American Congress forced them. No Igbo union travelled to the North demanding the South abandon its customs at gunpoint. So why the double standard now? Why this arrogant crusade to impose secular uniformity on the North while the South keeps its alcohol, pigs, gambling, and remaining customary relics?

The answer is simple: raw power play and religious imperialism.

Even the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) has warned that these US-backed demands “could heighten religious tension and destabilise the country.” They know the truth. The 2000 Kaduna riots that killed thousands over Sharia expansion were just a preview. Force this issue today—amid banditry, Boko Haram remnants, economic collapse, and festering north-south distrust—and you will ignite something far worse.

Vital questions the South and their American backers must answer:

- If your own customs were so barbaric that courts had to declare them “repugnant to natural justice,” why do you now claim the moral high ground to lecture the North on Sharia?
- Why demand the North abandon a law that applies only to consenting Muslims, while you keep drinking, eating pork, and gambling freely in the South?
- Who gave Igbos or evangelical Christians the divine right to dictate to Muslim-majority states?
- If you truly believe in equality, why not campaign to ban alcohol and gambling nationwide instead of targeting only Islamic law?

The message to the Igbos, the evangelicals, the US Congress, and every meddling outsider is crystal clear: Hands off Sharia!

Any forceful attempt to repeal it will fail. It will not bring unity—it will accelerate division. It will not heal wounds—it will open fresh ones that may never close. If you truly want to divide Nigeria, if you are so desperate to fracture this federation into pieces, then by all means proceed with this suicidal mission. Push harder. Issue more ultimatums. Back more reckless bills. The North will not surrender its faith. The consequences will be on your heads.

Nigeria’s survival depends on mutual respect, not imposed uniformity. Let the North live by its divine law. Let the South keep its own ways. True peace comes from sovereignty and dialogue among Nigerians—not from Washington or Enugu dictating to Kano and Maiduguri.

The clock is ticking. The choice is yours. Choose wisdom—or choose division. History is watching.

Mohammed Bello Doka can be reached via [email protected]

Abuja Network News 

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