The Ewi of Ado Ekiti, Oba Adeyemo Adejugbe has ordered that, in the interest of peaceful coexistence and law and order in the community, a Sharia panel sitting at the Central Mosque, Ado Ekiti should be disbanded immediately.
Reacting to the development, however, the Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) described Oba Rufus Adeyemo Adejugbe’s order as a violation of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
Oba Adejugbe spoke in Ado Ekiti on Saturday during a meeting he summoned of chiefs and indigenes of the community and the Chief Imam and President of the League of Imams and Alfas in the Southwest, Edo and Delta states, Sheik Jamiu Kewulere, over tension over the Sharia panel issue.
The monarch’s move followed an earlier notice by the state government that the existing legal structure in the state did not recognise the Sharia Court or Sharia Arbitration Panel.
According to the Ekiti State Commissioner for Justice and Attorney General, Dayo Apata (SAN), who reacted to news of the first public sitting of a Shari’ah Panel in the state that resolved two marriage disputes, the legal structure in Ekiti State (i.e. Customary Court, Customary Court of Appeal and High Court) had been handling issues relating to Islamic, Christian and traditional marriages and inheritance without any rancour or agitation.
Adejugbe said, “Based on this Sharia issue, I summoned the Chief Imam and his lieutenants, members of the Ewi-in-Council, the president of Ado Progressives Union and Ado sons and daughters to discuss the matter because it is a sensitive issue.
“We all listened and it appears they set up a committee at the Central Mosque with the intention to listen to disputes. According to them, they have good intentions and it was an internal arrangement that has nothing to do with any external person or somebody influencing them.
“I told them the mood of the nation will not allow such to happen now, that they should revert to how the founding fathers of the mosque had been settling disputes in the past without setting up a committee.
“I told them that there is no need for the committee and they should dissolve the committee henceforth. That is the decision of the Ewi-in-Council and that is the position of all Ado sons and daughters.
“The panel stands dissolved. If we should allow such committees, the Christians too will want to set up committees in their various churches, the traditional worshippers too and before you know it, it will lead to crises.”
Speaking earlier, the Chief Imam, Kewulere, who confirmed setting up the committee, dismissed all insinuations that it was set up for sinister motives.
Kewulere, who said that Muslims and adherents of other religions had been enjoying cordial relationships, said, “Basically, the committee is to look into matters of inheritance in the interest of our members.”
He dismissed insinuations that it was to create crisis and he dismissed any external influence or link.
MURIC Executive Director, Prof. Ishaq Akintola, on Sunday said Oba Adejugbe’s order was draconian, illegal, illegitimate, unlawful and unconstitutional thus #NoToDissolutionOfShariahPanel.
“An order has been given for the immediate dissolution of the Ekiti Shari’ah Panel. The order was issued yesterday, Saturday, 25th January, 2025, by the Ewi of Ado Ekiti, Oba Rufus Adeyemo Adejugbe.
“The Chief Imam of Ado Ekiti, Shaykh Jamiu Kewulere, was first summoned to the Ewi’s palace where he was allegedly lampooned and ordered to disband the Shari’ah panel.
“MURIC strongly condemns this approach. The Ewi’s order is an affront to Section 38(i)&(ii) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria which guarantees freedom of religion. It is therefore illegal, illegitimate, unlawful and unconstitutional. It is draconian, unknown to democratic norms and alien to global best practices.
“Article 9 of the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights & Fundamental Freedoms contains a right to show ‘respect for the religious feelings of believers…’
“The United Nations Charter also criminalises any attack on freedom of religion. Article 18 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Right (ICCPR) guarantees the right to freedom of religion unconditionally.
“The Ewi of Ado Ekiti was quoted as saying, ‘Let’s disband the committee, it doesn’t exist and it will never exist.’ Note the use of the word ‘never’. This is absolute lack of tolerance of other faiths and a manifestation of tons of hatred for Islam and its adherents.
“The problem with Nigeria is the impunity of leaders who fail to respect the rule of law but follow their whims and caprices. This is why we continue to have problems and there will be no solution until our leaders learn how to respect the rule of law and the principles of justice, fairness and equity.”
