In an interview published by Vanguard on Tuesday, March 10, 2026, Prof. Daniel Saror—former Vice Chancellor of Ahmadu Bello University and ex-Senator for Benue North East—expressed deep alarm over what he described as accelerated efforts by certain groups to impose Islamic religious law across the entire nation of Nigeria.
He questioned the sudden urgency behind this push, pointing out that Nigerians of different faiths have coexisted peacefully for centuries and that the 1999 Constitution explicitly guarantees every citizen the right to freely practice their religion without compulsion.
The professor described attempts to enforce Sharia law nationwide as deeply troubling and potentially dangerous. He noted that even in Saudi Arabia—the global center of Islamic practice and origin of many Sharia interpretations—the law is not applied uniformly to all residents or visitors.
Prof. Saror warned that trying to compel one religious legal system on a multi-faith population would inevitably breed resentment, tension, and possible conflict. He stressed that true peace and national harmony depend on mutual respect for religious diversity and strict adherence to constitutional secularism.
He cautioned that prioritizing one faith over others risks undermining the country’s stability and unity. Instead, he called on all religious and political actors to reject any form of religious imposition and to uphold tolerance as the foundation of peaceful coexistence.
In his own words:
“They want the whole country to be Sharia-controlled. Is there Sharia in Saudi Arabia? I hear that there is none there. It is a religious law. Why do you want to impose it on everybody? It’s very disturbing.” See more