Supreme Council for Shari’ah in Nigeria (SCSN) has called on President Bola Tinubu to remove the newly appointed Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Joash Ojo Amupitan, over an alleged controversial legal document he authored years ago.
The group said the document contained “provocative and bigoted statements” against Muslims in Northern Nigeria and questioned Amupitan’s ability to remain neutral as head of the electoral body.
POLITICS NIGERIA reports that the call followed revelations that Prof. Amupitan once wrote a legal brief in 2020 titled “Legal Brief: Genocide in Nigeria – The Implications for the International Community.”
The brief was published by the International Committee on Nigeria (ICON), an organisation known for promoting religious freedom.
The report, also referenced in another publication titled “Nigeria’s Silent Slaughter,” accused Nigerian authorities of ignoring what was described as “pogrom and attacks against Christians and minority groups in Nigeria.”
According to the Shari’ah Council, such claims were “distorted and unfair,” adding that the brief wrongly portrayed Muslims as perpetrators of genocide.
The Council said it found the revelations “deeply troubling” coming from someone now placed to oversee the nation’s electoral system.
“If indeed Prof. Amupitan authored the said document, his submissions are not only unbecoming of a person of learning but dangerously inimical to the unity, peace, and stability of our country,” the Council stated.
It further described his claims as “divisive and factually incorrect,” stressing that the ongoing violence across Northern and North-Central Nigeria affects all communities regardless of faith.
“The crisis in these regions is complex and multi-dimensional. Both Muslims and Christians have suffered greatly from banditry, terrorism, and communal clashes caused by years of neglect and poverty,” the Council said.
The group also cited humanitarian reports suggesting that Muslims have been the majority victims in several Northern states such as Borno, Zamfara, Katsina, Sokoto, and Yobe.
“The data clearly shows that over 90 percent of the victims in many of these areas are Muslims. That is the reality on the ground,” the statement added.
The Shari’ah Council strongly condemned any attempt to link the 19th-century Jihad of Sheikh Uthman bn Fodio to present-day violence, describing it as “a deliberate distortion of history.”
“The Jihad of Sheikh Uthman was not a campaign of hatred. It was a movement for reform, justice, and education. Misrepresenting it is an insult to history,” it said.
The SCSN argued that Amupitan’s previous writings raise doubts about his impartiality and questioned whether he could supervise credible elections in a country as diverse as Nigeria.
“Presiding over elections in a multi-religious nation demands neutrality and fairness. Prof. Amupitan’s past words do not inspire confidence in these principles,” the group stated.
The Council, therefore, urged President Tinubu to “review and reverse” the appointment in order to protect the credibility of Nigeria’s electoral system. It also appealed for calm among citizens, calling for unity across religious divides.
“We call on all Nigerians to avoid religious tension. Our real enemies are injustice, corruption, poverty, and insecurity,” the Council added.
The Supreme Council for Shari’ah reaffirmed its commitment to promoting peace, truth, and mutual respect among all faiths.