Huhuonline.com can authoritatively report that southern political leaders have entered the escalating US–Nigeria confrontation with a sharp, unexpected message: President Bola Tinubu must not allow northern political elites to weaponize Sharia law as a shield against international accountability. In a flurry of late night and emergency caucus meetings shortly after Tinubu travel to London for a state visit, southern governors, lawmakers, and civil society coalitions accused northern leaders of “hijacking the national narrative” and turning legitimate US human rights concerns into a regional loyalty test. The South’s intervention marks a dramatic new phase in the crisis, exposing deep internal fractures as Washington pressures Abuja to repeal Sharia law in twelve northern states.
A source close to Ogun State Governor, Dapo Abiodun, chairman of the 17-member Southern Governors’ Forum, who spoke to Huhuonline.com on background, warned that Nigeria’s unity cannot be held hostage by “regional legal systems that contradict the secular foundations of the constitution.”
A prominent southern governor who also elected anonymity said: “The North cannot claim exclusive ownership of Nigeria’s identity. If Sharia is now a national flashpoint attracting foreign sanctions, then the President must act in the national interest.” Another governor added: “We will not allow this crisis to be framed as North versus America. It is about Nigeria’s global reputation and our commitment to human rights.”
Many southern members of the National Assembly who spoke to Huhuonline.com argued that the US congressional pressure is a symptom, not the cause, of Nigeria’s crisis. One influential southern senator stated: “If northern leaders are worried about sanctions, they should address the violence, not attack the United States. The US is not the enemy; impunity is.” Another lawmaker warned that the North’s defiant posture could drag Nigeria into international isolation: “We cannot afford a diplomatic war with Washington. The consequences for our economy and security would be catastrophic.”
Some human rights organizations in Lagos, Port Harcourt, and Enugu contacted by Huhuonline.com supported the US congressional scrutiny, arguing that: Nigeria’s secular constitution must be upheld; religious minorities deserve protection, and state level laws cannot contradict federal guarantees
A spokesman for a coalition of southern NGOs who elected anonymity because he was not authorized to comment on the issue said: “If the federal government cannot protect citizens from religious bigotry and persecution, then the international community have a right to demand accountability.”
Speaking on background because of the sensitive nature of the issue, most southern political figures privately accuse northern elites of “political dramatics” - using Sharia law as a political rallying cry to deflect attention from militia violence, and pressuring Tinubu to choose regional loyalty over national unity. A senior southern strategist close to Anambra governor, Professor Chukwuma Soludo, deputy chairman of the Southwest Governors Forum said: “The North is playing a dangerous game. They want Tinubu to confront the United States on their behalf. That is not his mandate.”
Southern political leaders from the South West, South East, and South South regions, are now urging Tinubu to maintain diplomatic calm with Washington; avoid taking sides in a regional confrontation; prioritize Nigeria’s global standing, and demand accountability from all states, including northern ones. The President is now squeezed between northern outrage, southern insistence on constitutional secularism, US congressional pressure, and State Department threats. Nigeria’s political equilibrium is under unprecedented strain.
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