The Centre for the Promotion of Sharia (CPS) has warned the Sokoto State Government not to tamper with the Sultanate Council, to avoid the consequences of failing to do so.
The CPS, while reacting to a bill passed by the State House of Assembly, which seeks to strip the Sultan of Sokoto of powers to appoint district heads without the authorization of the governor, said the government should not toy with the revered religious institution.
The Chairman of CPS, Aliyu Ibrahim Altukri, warned that the Sultan is not just an institution exclusive to Sokoto State but a revered position in which all Nigerian Muslims have a stake.
“We are stakeholders in the Sultanate institution and we object to toying with it by any political office holder,” Altukri warned through statement on Saturday.
“The Centre joins MURIC, Vice President Kashim Shettima and Senator Shehu Sani who have expressed similar views.”
The Shariah Centre added that the Sultan represents a belief system and heritage established by Sheikh Uthman Danfodio which must be protected and promoted.
The Centre further warned groups, which called for the arrest of MURIC Director-General Prof. Ishaq Akintola, to desist from misleading leaders from toeing the wrong path, reminding them that the work of civil society organisations is to protect the populace from exploitative tendencies.
The statement, however, commended Sokoto State Government for “clarifying that it has no intention to toe the line that is being speculated and affirming that it holds the Sultanate in a very high regard and esteem.”
