Oyo Govt Weaponising Kidnap Saga Against Islam, MURIC Alleges

• Group says fabricated Sharia demand is part of campaign to stigmatise Muslims in South-West

IBADAN — A civil liberties organisation, the Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC), has accused the Oyo State Government of weaponising the ongoing abduction of schoolchildren and teachers in the state to incite religious hatred against Islam and Muslims in the South-West region.

In a press release issued on Tuesday, 9th June 2026, and signed by its Executive Director, Professor Ishaq Akintola, MURIC insisted that the controversial claim that the kidnappers demanded the implementation of Sharia law as a condition for releasing the hostages raises more questions than answers. The group declared that the entire narrative appears to be a calculated attempt to stigmatise Muslims and provoke public outrage against the faith.

Professor Akintola stated that the group has been led to this conclusion because the incident occurred within Oyo State, placing the matter squarely under the jurisdiction of the state government. He argued that it is therefore assumed that the state government has a major input in the ongoing negotiations, making it complicit in the spread of the disputed information.

According to the statement, a video clip emerged immediately after the so-called demand for Sharia law surfaced, showing some traditionalists staging a public protest, presumably in Ibadan, the state capital. The group quoted the video where a lady led others to chant, “Say no to Islam, Esin apaayan,” which translates to “Say no to Islam, the religion of murderers.” MURIC described this as highly provocative.

The group maintained that the protest was staged after the fabricated demand for Sharia by the kidnappers was announced. It alleged that the kidnappers’ conditions, including the demand for the implementation of Sharia, were made public through the instrumentality of the state government under the watch of Governor Seyi Makinde.

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Professor Akintola therefore held Governor Makinde responsible for inciting people against Muslims, warning that any unpalatable outcome arising from the situation must also be attributed to him. He further argued that it would be relatively safe to conclude that the so-called conditions, including that of Sharia implementation, could not have reached the public without the knowledge of the state government.

MURIC then tasked the Oyo State government to speak up on whether or not the kidnappers actually demanded the implementation of Sharia law as a condition for releasing the kidnapped children and their teachers. The group demanded that the state government clarify the issue without further delay.

Beyond the need for clarifications, the group raised several logical questions regarding the alleged demand. It asked why kidnappers of schoolchildren in Oyo State would add the implementation of Sharia to their demands when full Sharia implementation in northern Nigeria did not dissuade kidnappers there from abducting the old, the young, Christians and Muslims alike.

The group further questioned why kidnapping became rampant in the North, which is the home of Islamic law, if the law is supposedly attractive to kidnappers. It also asked why Oyo kidnappers would demand Sharia when the same legal system did not stop kidnapping in the northern region.

Professor Akintola also demanded transparency regarding those negotiating with the kidnappers, asking who they are and how transparent the process has been. He suggested that an embedded Islamic scholar should be part of the negotiation team for verification of the Sharia clause.

In a particularly strong statement, the group argued, “How can a robber demand the presence of armed policemen at the scene of his robbery? Can a rat make it a condition that a huge cat must be on guard where it wants to steal roasted fish? It stands logic on its head.”

MURIC further noted that even the Sharia brand being practised in the North is full-scale, while Muslims in the South-West have been demanding only a mild form of civil Sharia to be used for family matters. The group questioned who the narrative was intended to fool.

The group also issued a political warning, cautioning political associates of former Vice President Alhaji Atiku Abubakar and the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress against picking Governor Seyi Makinde as a running mate. Professor Akintola described Makinde as a “sworn enemy of Islam,” claiming this has been obvious in his speeches and actions. He added that a liberal Christian from the South would be more acceptable to Southern Muslims.

In conclusion, MURIC stated that whoever injected the Sharia demand into the kidnappers’ conditionalities has “shot himself in the foot.”

As of the time of filing this report, the Oyo State Government had not issued an official response to MURIC’s allegations. Meanwhile, the abducted schoolchildren and teachers remain in captivity, with the Vice Principal of the school, Mrs. Folawe Alamu, having previously debunked the Sharia law demand in a video statement, insisting that the kidnappers only want their detained members released.

Oyo Govt Weaponising Kidnap Saga Against Islam, MURIC Alleges