An editorial in Punch newspaper described Buhari's action as dictatorial and capable of precipitating a constitutional crisis:
Ya ƙwace ikon Majalisar Shari'a ta ƙasa wadda ita kundin tsarin mulki ya ba wa damar bayar da shawarar irin wannan cirewar daga ɓangaren shari'a ko majalisar dattijai (babbar majalisar ƙasa) wadda za ta sanya wa irin waɗannan matakan hannu.