Headlines
JAMB Registrar Oloyede Pushes for Sharia Panels in South West
The Secretary-General of 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 doubles as 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.
Oloyede said: “I believe that Nigeria is great and Nigeria will continue to be great but it requires a lot of rethinking. Recently, people are talking about Sharia Panels in South-West and I was just smiling; I was smiling that I had never seen that level of ignorance being displayed. Sharia Panel in Oyo State, somebody did a PhD thesis on it in 2007 which means it had been there before 2007. The person who wrote on that appraisal is a professor today in Ibadan. He is Prof Makinde, and the governor coincidentally is Makinde. I don’t know whether they are related.”
The former Vice Chancellor of the University of Ilorin said the matter is something so trivial, and warned against building unnecessary tension around it, especially in the South-West where Muslims, Christians and traditional institutions have co-existed peacefully for ages.
He, however, said the Muslims in the South-West are paying psychologically for the harmony enjoyed in the zone.
Oloyede said: “When you have such a situation (of religious tolerance) and you do not continue to monitor what you are doing, you will be living in the past. I’m a Muslim from the South-West. The Muslims from the South-West pay psychologically for the peace and harmony that we are talking about.
“The churches are licensed by the government to conduct marriages that are statutory and if you have any dispute within your marriage, you go to government-funded high courts for dispute resolution.
“If there is a dispute in my marriage, where do I go? I don’t have the opportunity because I married according to Islamic rites, I will have to go to customary court where the customary judge knows next to nothing about my faith, about the laws on the basis on which we got married. He would now use customary law to determine Islamic marriage and the Constitution of Nigeria allows it to say where the state of assembly allows it, there should be Sharia Courts of Appeal.
“There have been Sharia Courts of Appeal in different parts of the country, particularly in the northern part of Nigeria. When we say there is harmony, it means somebody is suffering in silence but when the person speaks, they say: ‘Why are you making noise?’”
He faulted those criticizing the Sultan of Sokoto for speaking up, saying that Muslims in Nigeria practice the same Islam. “I think we should be able to tolerate one another,” he said.
Veteran journalist and chieftain of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Chief Dele Momodu, has declared that a joint presidential ticket between Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi represents the strongest strategy for the opposition to defeat the ruling All Progressives Congress in the 2027 general elections.
Speaking on Politics Today on Channels Television, Momodu said the emerging ADC coalition is gaining momentum as a credible alternative to President Bola Tinubu’s administration, which he accused of promoting “one-man rule” and weakening democratic institutions.
Momodu argued that an Atiku–Obi ticket offers both experience and electoral appeal, noting that both politicians already command significant national followings from previous elections. He recalled their collaboration in 2019, adding that Obi’s performance in the 2023 presidential election provides a ready base of supporters that can be consolidated.
According to him, the coalition is further strengthened by the involvement of political heavyweights such as Rabiu Kwankwaso and Rotimi Amaechi, making it a formidable opposition alliance.
“The candidates who placed second, third, and even fourth are aligning. That naturally builds a strong challenge,” Momodu said, suggesting that this development could unsettle the APC ahead of 2027.
He also accused the Tinubu administration of centralising power and undermining democratic processes, claiming that key institutions—including the legislature and electoral system—are increasingly influenced by the executive arm of government. He warned that such a trend poses risks to Nigeria’s democracy.
Momodu further alleged that opposition parties face systemic obstacles, including difficulties in accessing venues, legal pressures, and institutional interference. He argued that these challenges have made opposition unity not just strategic, but necessary.
Dismissing concerns about possible cracks within the ADC coalition, Momodu described such fears as speculative, insisting that current political realities have effectively forced major opposition figures to work together.
The Supreme Court has scheduled hearing for April 22 in the appeal filed by the National Chairman of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Senator David Mark, in relation to the leadership dispute in the party.
Mark’s appeal is against the March 12 judgment of the Court of Appeal, which dismissed his appeal against the September 4, 2025 ruling by Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court in Abuja refusing to grant some injunctive reliefs contained in an ex-parte application filed by a chieftain of the party, Nafiu Bala Gombe.
A five-member panel of the Supreme Court, led by Justice Mohammed Garba chose the date on Tuesday after granting accelerated hearing in the appeal marked: SC/CV/180/2026.
The court ordered Mark’s lawyer, Jibril Okutepa (SAN) to file the appellant’s brief and serve on Wednesday.
It ordered the respondents to each file and serve on the appellant, a respondent’s brief within three days of being served with the appellant’s brief.
The appellant, according to the court, is to file a reply brief, if needs be, within one day of being served with the respondents’ briefs.
Headlines
Amid Denials, ADC Reportedly Secures Rainbow Event Centre As Venue for National Convention
Baring any last minute change, the leadership of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) under Senator David Mark and Rauf Aregbesola as National chairman and National Secretary respectively will hold the party’s National convention at the National Rainbow Event Centre in Garki on Tuesday, 14 April 2026.
The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has being denied two venues without any cogent reasons despite early arrangements, according to sources.
First, it was alleged that the Abuja Transcorp Hilton Hotels, which was initially approached, turned down the ADC request to use it’s facility.
The ADC, having sensed sabotage, has kept the Rainbow Event Center under rap as it’s definite venue.
The last National Executive Committee (NEC) of the party was held at the same venue.
Located adjacent the Nigerian Police Force Headquarters, the event centre will host the second NEC meeting of the ADC and it’s forthcoming national convention.
According to The Guardian’ report, the ADC leadership has communicated the venue to state chapters with the caveat not to escalate it.
The ADC is in a battle of survival against the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and has approached the Supreme Court for intervention.
The INEC national chairman Prof Joash Amupitan has suspended recognition of the David Mark-led ADC rendering a leadership vacuum in the party.
INEC said it’s decision was on the basis of an Appeal Court pronouncement that ordered statusquo ante-bellum be maintained.
Reports say that why the venue is being quietly decorated moderately for the event, the ADC intends to fully move in the early hours of Tuesday.
The Guardian
