Uproar continues over Reps’ plan to give Sharia Court more powers

The general uproar in Nigeria’s political and religious spaces which started last week has continued unabated after it was discovered that a member of the House of Representatives had smuggled in a pro-Sharia bill and that the bill had secretly passed second reading.

It was reported that the sponsor of the bill, Abdullahi Salame, representing Gwadabawa/Illela federal constituency of Sokoto State, was advised by Yakubu Dogara, Speaker of the House, to quietly speedy the bill through a second reading to avoid controversy.

Salame had in an interview with an online medium said the speaker recognised that the bill could draw public outrage and urged him not to “make noise” about it to avoid controversy, a decision Nigerians say suggests hidden agenda.

It was reliably gathered that the bill, which seeks to amend sections of the Constitution to give more powers to the Sharia Court of Appeal, had quietly passed the second reading about two weeks ago.
Nigerians who spoke with BDSUNDAY in Lagos were enraged by the action of the junior lawmakers and cautioned that such secret action should not be synonymous with people termed ‘honourable’ in a society already tensed.

“The passage of the bill raised fears after the term ‘jurisdiction’ was reportedly misconstrued for expanding Sharia law to states other than where it currently applies. The man who sponsored the bill sought to amend sections 262 and 277 of the 1999 Constitution to add ‘criminal’ to the existing provisions. He has no right to be talking about Sharia expansion in a secular and multi-religious nation like Nigeria,” said Festus Atinse, a Lagos resident.

Yakubu Maina, another resident, said he has always asked himself why terrorism and barbarism in Nigeria were sustained for so long.

“Jonathan said there were Boko Haram sympathizers in his government and yet nothing was done to expose them. Now I see that it’s not just in the then presidency. It abounds even within the legislators,” he said.

“How can these people be talking about amending the constitution to give more power to Sharia? Is Nigeria a Muslim country? This people should stop passing laws with propensity to cause religious tension in the country,” he added.

He lamented that while Nigerians’ living standard is plunging following hike in basic necessities, the legislators are earning fat salaries, billions for renovation of building, and asked the lawmakers to publicly state their earnings rather than engage in legislative actions capable of throwing the country into anarchy.

“Nigeria is a multi-ethnic, multi-religion /belief society. We are so distinct one from another that we must have a common law that accommodate all. Most western countries that wanted to accommodate other interests within their plural societies like Nigeria devised constitutions that different nations seek to formulate,” said Idris Mohammed.

“No one will care if a Christian can clearly refuse the jurisdiction of the Sharia courts; it then becomes the Islamic problem that can be allowed within our laws. Mind you, we also have customary courts which are at par with Sharia courts and they do not have ‘criminal codes’. I will suggest the Reps must say ‘NO’ to this obnoxious amendment,” he further said.

But Judith Ebhohon said Christian legislators at the lower chamber must wake up from slumber to defend the interest of their religion, arguing that their colleague who sponsored the bill did so in his religion’s interest.

“Don’t you know that when this Sharia law is expanded as is being proposed, Christians will, no doubt, be tried in that court? When a Christian commits an offence, he will be taken to Sharia court instead of criminal court. And the Muslims will drum it to your hearing, ‘Sharia courts in the north try criminal cases’. This is another way Jihadists are using to implement their Islamic agenda on the Christians,” she said.

Also speaking to BDSUNDAY, Ernest Iyere upheld that a Sharia court in a country with circular citizens is not a good idea.

“If you put those laws which are Islamic into the constitution but you fail to put in other religion’s own laws, then you are making a statement that the country is an Islamic state. This is wrong. Half of the country doesn’t practice Islam, so sneaking it into the constitution is asking for trouble,” he argued.

Speaking further, Iyere said: “Why would someone be promoting laws that emphasis the difference between people of a country? So, any other group with sufficient followers, connections and political clout should also come forward and push for their own beliefs and faiths to become part of our laws? If it’s good for one group why not let all others groups do it? If the Indian population in Nigeria increases, let us also promulgate laws that will accommodate their culture and beliefs.
“Also, if the Guru Maharaji followers become millions in number, let us also include their own beliefs into our laws. If we follow this line of thinking that people come forward and turn their religious and cultural beliefs into law Nigeria descend into chaos.

“I am an open-minded man and I love people of all tribes, religions and cultures. But I think it’s totally irresponsible to attempt the expansion of such laws in a country like Nigeria with so many diverse people. One group wants to extend the application of their beliefs further into our criminal justice system. Haba! It’s silly to posit that the laws will only affect Muslims. How practical is that? You all know that’s not true.

“Once any law affects my right and freedoms under the constitution then there is problem. Are we not one country with many different people? Why must an agenda such as this be supported by the very politicians who understand how fragile the threads that bind us together as a nation? This must stop.”

Also speaking, Doris Ncheribe said the junior lawmakers are only giving ammunition and strengthening the arguments of those who say Nigeria is not a country but a contraption doomed to fail.

“What they are proposing will create a new imbalance and disequilibrium in our society. We don’t need this. That shows to you that these lawmakers are so ignorant and clueless about what is good for the over 170 million people. They are nothing but figure heads! I look forward to the day Nigerian youths will wise up and kick them all out.

“But ‘am sure the president will not sign such bill into law. He’s not the president of the Muslims only but the president of all Nigerians, regardless of their religious affiliations”, she said.

She frowned that at a time when the nation’s economy is in the valley and poverty and separatist agitations are threatening the country’s existence, the important issue to an elected lawmaker from Sokoto State, a state where a recent report revealed needs about 9,000 teachers, is a bill on Sharia.
“This particular lawmaker and the Speaker, who should have dissuaded him, need to have their heads examined,” she advised.

 

NATHANIEL AKHIGBE