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Tag: Hijab

  • Hijab: Court strikes out Osun CAN’s application

    Hijab: Court strikes out Osun CAN’s application

    AN Osun State High Court, sitting in Osogbo, has struck out the application for stay of execution order sought by the state chapter of the Christian Association of Nigeria (OS-CAN) on the court judgement, allowing female Muslim students to wear hijab in public schools.

    When the case came up yesterday, the lead counsel to OS-CAN, Ayo Laogun, told the court that the case had gone to the Appeal Court.

    He applied to withdraw the application for stay of execution, saying: “In view of Order 4 Rules 10 & 11 of the Court of Appeal Rules 2011, the lower court cannot take the application”.

    Counsel to the 1st to 5th respondents, Governor Rauf Aregbesola, Ministry of Education and three others, Jide Obisakin, did not oppose the withdrawal application.

    Justice Jide Falola, therefore, struck out the application.

    The lead counsel to the Muslim community, Kazeem Odedeji, who came after the court sitting, explained that the agreement was to meet at 11am.

    He wondered why the case was taken at 9.am.

    He, however, expressed his satisfaction with the withdrawal of the motion for execution.

    He said: “The motion for stay was withdrawn and struck out. We are satisfied because the implication is that there is no motion for stay again in any court and nothing anybody can hinge upon against the full implementation of the judgment. It then behooves all parties to fully obey the judgment”

     

     

  • Obasanjo hails Aregbesola for dousing tension on hijab

    Former President Olusegun Obasanjo, at the weekend, hailed Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola for being neutral in matters relating to religion.

    The former president said the religious unrest that greeted the court ruling permitting the use of female head scarf (hijab) in Osun public schools was one good example.

    Obasanjo spoke as the chairman of the occasion at the handover ceremony of a multi-purpose hall and a library donated by Senator Yinka Omilani to Ode-Omu community.

    He stated that the utterances of Aregbesola on the court verdict doused tension in the state.

    Aregbesola had at the wake of the controversy that trailed the order of court said he had at no time ordered the use of hijab in schools.

    He noted that since he could not order his wife and daughter on the use of hijab, he could not have done that with Osun.

    The former president, who was represented by Gbaabile of Egbaland, Dr. Femi Majekodunmi, said the statement from the governor confirmed his neutrality in the conflict.

    He said: “He (Obasanjo) is in China now. He said the governor (Aregbesola) said something which confirmed his neutrality in the matter; that word went a long way in dousing the tension which recently heightened in the state.”

    Obasanjo described the donor, Senator Omilani, a former Vice Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party in the Southwest, as a great philanthropist, noting that his contribution to his community, Osun State and Nigeria at large can never be overlooked.

    He urged the community to make the judicious use of the facilities, which he described as a significant legacy.

    Aregbesola reaffirmed his administration’s determination on provision of infrastructures in nooks and crannies of the state regardless of the present economic situation.

    He announced that the ongoing construction of Gbongan/Ode-Omu dual-carriageway would be completed before the end of the year.

    The governor attributed the slow-pace of work at various construction sites and projects by his administration to the effect of fall in the revenue accruing to the state.

    He assured that all the ongoing projects would be completed before the end of his tenure.

    The donor of the library attributed the construction of the ultra-modern library and multi-purpose hall as part of his compassion and commitment towards the growth of education and Ode-Omu community.

    Omilani said the provision of supplementary readers in schools and public libraries was one sure way of expanding the horizon of knowledge and acquisition of life-long skill, saying the act will save the teeming youths from idleness and juvenile delinquency.

  • Hijab: Nigeria’s Media Conspiracy

    Hijab: Nigeria’s Media Conspiracy

    “The relationship of religion to Truth is like that of a menu to a meal. By describing the meal as best as it can, the menu points to something beyond itself. When we use the menu as a guide to the choice of our meal we do it the deserved honor. But when we mistake the menu for the meal, we do it and ourselves a grave injustice.”
    By Reb Yerachmiel

    Preamble

    It was not the intention of yours sincerely to write about the Osun State hijab crisis again in this column today. But doing so became inevitable as a way of clarifying some issues shamelessly but deliberately muddled up by some Nigerian reporters/correspondents who have connived to throw the ethics of their profession to the winds seemingly for the sake of bread and butter.

     

    In Retrospect

    About three years ago, a supposed Nigerian journalist of Yoruba stock from the Lagos/Ibadan axis of Nigerian media (name withheld) boasted to yours sincerely. He said that “you veteran journalists only spent the most active part of your professional lives to work assiduously for the stability of journalism in Nigeria while we, the touting journalists of today are here to reap the fruit of your labour.  Now, we do not labour much before riding in jeeps and living in mansions”. In response to that puzzling comment, I merely grinned in amazement.

     

    Update

    It was only last Tuesday, when Nigerian newspapers were awash with a glaring false news report of a press conference at which I was present that I came to grasp the esoteric meaning of the boasting comment of that unnamed pseudo journalist.

    The syndicated falsehood was filed to the various print media houses by the members of Ibadan-based glorified correspondents’ chapel including their so-called Chairman (a Pastor in a foremost Pentecostal Church). Embarrassingly, that report was the direct opposite of the statement made at the press conference in which I, as a veteran journalist, was involved. It was a clear evidence of professional abuse for which some of those correspondents are well known.

    The connotation here is that quackery has come to replace professionalism in Nigerian journalism. And, in truth, that much is very manifest in the current practice of what we used to proudly call ‘the noble profession’. The quality and dept of reportage these days serve as evidence of no thoroughness either in terms of proper training or those of professional ethics.

     

    The Missing Dignity

    In any modern society where normalcy holds sway, a journalist is seen like an arbiter who, through his reportorial, moderates fairly among conflicting parties without reflecting an iota of bias. If such an arbiter is the first to start a street brawl, how can he retain the dignity of an arbiter?

    Today, neither the nobility of journalism profession nor the pride of its practitioners exists any longer. Thus, genuine journalism can be said to be dead in Nigeria with average reporter becoming like a vulture hanging anxiously around the corner to feast undeservedly on the carcass of a comatose prey. Professionally speaking, journalism in Nigeria has unprecedentedly reached its dead end. What remains of it in the real sense is the shameless ‘pick and chop’ game in which the half-baked, so called reporters/correspondents are actively but greedily engaged.

    If the so-called ‘Fourth Estate of the realm’ could descent to such a notorious level within the same realm, one can imagine how much doomed has the realm itself become. With this crop of quacks parading themselves as journalists in Nigeria today, only a few patriotic parents would want to encourage their wards to become journalists anymore especially since journalism is fast becoming a symbol of falsehood. I may be one of such parents.

    What Transpired at the Press Conference?

    On Monday, June 27, 2016, most Ibadan-based media correspondents (about 27 of them) assembled at the grandiose Islamic Center situated on the famous Awolowo Road, (Housing Corporation Area), Bodija, Ibadan, on the invitation of the Muslim Ummah of South West Nigeria (MUSWEN). The latter, being the umbrella body of all Muslims in the South West region including the State Muslim Councils of those States as well as the League of Imams  Alfas of Yoruba land had planned a Press Conference at which to express its own reaction to the judgment given two weeks ago on the hijab case in Osun State.

    Meanwhile, as the noise kept raging on that judgment and loudly echoed with unambiguous partiality, as usual, by Nigerian media, MUSWEN remained calm and cautious as it kept consulting with the Muslim stakeholders in the region before arriving at the decision to hold a Press Conference on the issue to explain its position to the world on behalf of the South West Muslims.

     

    Presentation of Facts 

    Following the presentation of facts in an 11 page written statement read by the Executive Secretary of MUSWEN, Professor D. O. S. Noibi, OBE, DSc, FISN, FIAC, questions and comments were thrown open while the full text of the read statement was given to everyone of the correspondents present at the occasion.

    As a veteran who is well familiar with the nitty-gritty of reportorial, yours sincerely seized the opportunity to counsel those correspondents on the professional implication of editorialization and cautioned them against it. However, despite that counseling, the usual short cut was adopted in writing, syndicating and filing falsehood to their various newspapers. It was a shame beclouding the right sense of judgment.

    The Contents of the Press Statement

    For the benefit of the fair-minded readers of this column and numerous others the especially Muslims of the South West who may have been deliberately misled by the by some fanatical reporters present at that conference, the full text of MUSWEN’s statement is re-presented here below. Please, read on:

    “A judge can’t have any agenda, a judge can’t have any preferred outcome in any particular case and a judge certainly doesn’t have a client. The judge’s only obligation – and it’s a solemn obligation – is to the rule of law.”

    Samuel Alito (US Supreme Court Justice)

     

    Opening Remark

    Gentlemen of the Press, on behalf of the leadership of the Muslim Ummah of South West Nigeria (MUSWEN) and indeed all Muslims in the South West region of Nigeria, I want to warmly welcome you all to this all-important Press Conference.

    As we are all aware, MUSWEN is the umbrella body for all Muslims, Muslim organizations and Muslim institutions domiciled in the South West region of Nigeria. The body aggregates the aspirations and interests of all Muslims in the region.

    It is thus part of our primary obligations, not only to propagate Islam and defend the interests of Muslims, but also to promote the cause of peace and peaceful co-existence among the people, irrespective of their faith and ethnicity, in the region.

    This press conference becomes imperative against some recent happenings with regard to the use of hijab in public primary and secondary schools in Osun State. We wish to state that this is not the first time that MUSWEN would be addressing the media on the issue of hijab in Osun State public schools. The first conference was held on 20th February, 2014 when the issue was at its infancy.

     

    The Background

    The Osun State Muslim Community and the Muslim Students’ Society of Nigeria (MSSN) on February 14, 2013, dragged the Osun State Government to court seeking an order of the court to allow female Muslim students enjoy their fundamental right to use hijab in public primary and secondary schools in the State pursuant to Sections 38 and 42 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999.

    The suit which was directly instituted against the State Government also had the State Commissioner for Education, Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, among others, as respondents. The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Osun State Chapter, its chairman and other interested Christians voluntarily joined as respondents.

    The applicants told the court that female Muslim pupils/students were being harassed by the fourth and fifth respondents (Principal and Head teacher of a public secondary and public primary school respectively), insisting that such was a clear discrimination and infringement on their fundamental rights.

    The applicants premised their argument on a decision of the Court of Appeal, Ilorin, in The Provost, Kwara State College of Education, Ilorin & 2 Ors vs Bashirat Saliu & Ors, which noted that female Catholics wear hijab, while Mary, the mother of Jesus was always depicted as wearing hijab on her head.

    However, the respondents insisted that only beret and face cap were recognized and that students should abide by the government’s directives. They insisted that allowing students to wear hijab in schools where Churches are located was alien to their religion and thereby urged the court to dismiss the application of the applicants.

     

    The Judgment

    In his judgment on June 3, 2016, Justice Jide Falola of the Osun State High Court observed that religion was introduced to the case when the CAN and others joined the suit, noting that he decided to deliver the judgment after all pleas to settle the matter amicably had proved futile.

    In a 51-page judgement, Justice Falola ruled that the use of hijab by female Muslims is their fundamental human right to freedom of religion, conscience and thought, and as such no female student should be molested or sent out of school for wearing it. Premising his judgment on Section 38 of the Nigeria Constitution and Article 8 of the 2004 policy published by the state Ministry of Education, Justice Falola held that female Muslim students were not exempted from the freedom of religion, conscience and thought.

    He ordered that the respondents should be restrained from disallowing the use of hijab by female Muslim students, adding that the students who wear hijab should ensure that it is in the colour prescribed by the first to fifth respondents. He said since the respondents had failed to cite any relevant authority in their response, he would be bound by the decision of the Appellate court in Ilorin which the applicants had cited in their application.

    Quoting copiously from Article 8 of the Guidelines on Administration and Discipline in Public Schools in Osun State which was issued by the State Government in 2004 which says “there are no mission school presently in Osun state as all schools have been taken over by government in 1975,” Justice Falola upheld all the prayers of the applicants and held that no student should be prevented from enjoying his or her right.

     

    To be continued next Friday in sha’Allah.

  • Muslim parents, clerics warned on hijab

    Muslim parents, clerics warned on hijab

    Muslim Ummah of Southwest Nigeria (MUSWEN) has warned Muslim parents and clerics in Osun State not to enforce the court order on the use of hijab by female pupils in public schools.

    The Muslim community in 2013 filed a case against the government on the right of female Muslim pupils in public schools to wear hijab on their uniform.

    A high court on June 3 granted female Muslim pupils the right to wear hijab. But the state’s Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) faulted the judgment and vowed to appeal it.

    CAN said it would direct Christian pupils to wear church garments, to propagate their faith if the government implemented the judgment.

    Since the judgment, female Muslim pupils have been wearing hijab on their uniform, while Christians wore church garments on their uniform, as directed by CAN.

    MUSWEN Executive Secretary Prof. Dawud Noibi, who addressed reporters yesterday in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, said the action of the Muslims, which caused crisis by enforcing the use of hijab, was not supported by MUSWEN.

    His words: “No citizen has a right to take the law into his hands. We believe that barring any attempt to frustrate the enforcement of the court order, the government has adequate machinery to enforce the order. Only the government has the power to enforce laws.”

    Noibi urged the government to do the needful on the court order, saying justice must not only be done, but must be seen to be done.

    The don enjoined the CAN leadership to consider the advice of Archbishop John Cardinal Onaiyekan that the country should adopt the policy that no law should prohibit what religion prescribed or required citizens to do what religion prohibited.

    “Osun CAN not only rejected the ruling of a court of competent jurisdiction, it encouraged Christian pupils to disobey the court order by instigating them to go to school in their church attires.

    “Besides, on moral ground, one may ask, how does a Muslim girl’s wearing of hijab offend a Christian? The court ruling does not compel all Muslim pupils to wear hijab. It is left to the choice of the pupil, who wishes to obey the order coming from her creator. The court has only affirmed her God-given right,” Noibi said.

    The MUSWEN leader advised CAN to allow peace reign, respect the court order and follow the path of law.

     

     

  • Your editorial on Hijab

    SIR, unable to steer clear of bias, The Nation wrote an editorial on June 16, titled That Curious Verdict on the court verdict delivered by Justice Jide Falola on June 3, in Osun State. The court had held that the Muslim female students in public primary and secondary schools in the state are free to wear hijab in their schools. The editorial gives an unreliable interpretation of this landmark verdict and ceaselessly put forward wrong examples to justify the misinterpretation. For instance, in the 4th paragraph, the editorial asks a rhetorical question: What has human right got to do with the dress code adopted by organisations? In the following paragraph, the editorial continues: We cannot pretend, as a nation, to be oblivious to developments on the global stage. Do police women wear hijabs? Do judges? Yes, police women and judges are allowed to wear the hijab in many Western countries, and so are students in public and some private schools. Also in the northern part of the country, and in some states in the western part, Muslim students are already allowed to use the hijab in public schools by government directives. Nothing more than a few clicks online would have revealed this to The Nation. What The Nation should be doing is advocate to secure the rights of those kids that are being forced to make a choice between education and a religious observance.

    It is definitely not for The Nation to state the legal position on the issue, the court reserves that right. The newspaper remarkably erred in surmising that religious mandated dress code has got no connection with human right. In the abstract of a paper titled “Moslem Women, Religion And The Hijab: A Human Rights Perspective” in the East African Journal of Peace and Human Rights (Vol. 14 (1) 2008: pp. 148), M Ssenyonjo, Professor of International Law and Human Rights at Brunel University, London focuses on the status of the hijab in Islam and selected recent cases concerning the wearing of the Islamic dress in schools: “On the basis of these, two conclusions are made. Firstly, to prevent a person from making a choice to wear religious clothing (like the hijab) in public or private schools or institutions, in the absence of justification compatible with human rights law, may impair the individual’s freedom to have or adopt a religion. Secondly, the general exclusion of women from schools or work on account of the Islamic dress might lead to further discrimination against girls and women in education and employment. A human rights perspective to the Islamic dress should involve as a starting point respecting choices of individual Muslim women to wear or not to wear the hijab.”

    This editorial and other comments like it are over-simplifying the substantive issues surrounding the hijab crisis in Osun State and the historical background to it.

     

    • Disu Kamor,

    Muslim Public Affairs Centre, Lagos.

  • Civil societies back Osun ruling on hijab

    Civil societies back Osun ruling on hijab

    The Coalition of Civil Society for Equality and Justice has said that the pronouncement of the court on the rights of Muslims pupils to hijab must be respected and enforced by the government of the state.

    The group urged those who feel aggrieved on the matter to challenge the ruling at a higher court without subverting the tenets of democracy and the rule of law thereby throwing the society into a state of anarchy.

    Addressing pressmen in Lagos, the group, represented by Comrade Ayinde Olaide

    of Centre for Global Peace Initiatives (CGPI), Comrade Buna OIaitan  of Human Rights Monitoring Agenda (HURMA) and Comrade Tunde Ibrahim of Olumuyiwa Wahab Foundation (OWF), said: “We must accept the social reality of the Nigerian state as a multi-religious, multi-cultural and multi-ethnic society, with the rule of law as the cardinal pillar through which equality, liberty and fraternity could be guaranteed.

    “The Coalition strongly deplores the impunity and desecration of the Nigerian Constitution being perpetrated by those who disagree with the court rulings. Both Muslim and Christian leaders must not encourage a breakdown of law and order. The centrifugal tendencies inherent in a plural society can be counteracted by the cooperative attitudes and behaviour of the leaders of the different segments of the population.

    The group hailed the “maturity of the Osun state government in the face of provocation of the forces of destabilisation and insist that democracy and the rule of law not be sacrificed on the altar of blackmail and intimidation.

    “It is our belief that the world has gone global and cultures are intermingling on a daily basis. A look at some of the advanced countries that we emulate as a people shows provision for hijab-wearing females in public institutions in recognition of the need for citizens to balance between civic obligations and religious injunctions and Nigeria cannot be an exception. It is worthy of note that reactions like this opposition are only localised and borne out of sheer intolerance and ignorance”

    The group warned described as “sheer propaganda to label the Governor Rauf Aregbesola as the harbinger of this engineered confusion that is now raging in Osun state. With or without him, those who see the denial of the hijab as a violation of their rights would still have gone ahead to seek redress before the law court. And when the law speaks, every law abiding citizen ought to sheath his/her sword. “Neither should the school re-classification policy of the State Government be held in contempt as its aim is to accelerate the level of development of all public schools in the state. If ‘Opon Imo’ is novel, it came out of the same genuine concern as the re-classification policy. The Osun state chapter of CAN ought to have borrowed a leaf from another religious group in Lagos state which lost the same case in a court ruling but took to the legal instrument of appeal rather than resort to anarchy.”

     

  • The Hijab saga in Osun State

    The Hijab saga in Osun State

    There are good men in every land; the tree of life has many branches and roots; let not the topmost twig presume to think that it alone has sprung from the mother earth; we did not choose our races by ourselves; Jews, Muslims, Christians, all alike are men; let me hope I have found in you a man”.

     

    Preamble

    Quite a number of ardent readers of ‘The Message’ must have anxiously waited for today’s article having been familiar with the writing style of this columnist. ‘The Message’ is well known for its currency, promptness and research especially on matters relating to justice and logical deductions. Thus, writing on the controversy surrounding the wearing of hijab in Osun State’s schools by Muslim female pupils cannot be strange at this time. The issue has generated so much of unwarranted heat that only a few people will wonder if decorum has any role to play in religion at all in this case. And the Press which is supposed to be the Fourth Estate of the Realm is not helping the matter as men and women of the pen profession have shamelessly turned themselves into the judiciary passing judgments on the pages of newspapers or radio and television stations.

    As expected, this article is about the unnecessary hyperbolic brouhaha going on in Osun State over a court judgment on the baseless controversy surrounding the wearing of hijab by the State’s secondary school Muslim female pupils as ruled by the court of law. The brouhaha became ridiculously laughable when one looks at the caliber of people involved and the role they are playing in spite of their self-acclaimed education and religious leadership.

     

    VP’s Comment

    Nigeria’s Vice-President, Professor (Pastor) Yemi Osibajo SAN, was, as usual, eloquent, last Monday (June 20, 2016) while commenting at a conference held in Abuja on law and religious freedom in Nigeria. He said that law should not be enacted to hinder religious freedom. His Excellency was apparently speaking in reference to the controversial bill seeking to control the propagation of religions against provocation and fanaticism in Kaduna State.

    By inference that comment can equally be applicable to the situation in Osun State where the State leadership of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) is taking the law into its own hands with crude impunity against the court judgment on the case. Instead of contesting the judgment in a higher court, if it finds it objectionable, as the Lagos Muslim Community did in a similar case two years ago, Osun State CAN decided to constitute itself into a counter court with little regard for decorum expected of religious leadership.

    That situation has elicited many logical questions which would have been raised and answered in this article but a thorough and sincere stakeholder has relieved yours sincerely of that trouble in an article published by Premier Times of June 18, 2016. Excerpts from the article written by one Kikiowo Ileowo (a Christian) and entitled “Much Ado about Hijab Wearing to Schools In the State Of Osun” are presented verbatim here as follows:

    “Much has been said in recent times about the wearing of Hijab and Church robes to school by pupils in public schools in the State of Osun. However, what has apparently been missing in the discussion is the availability of facts and logic, and for discussants to analyze the true situation of things before making their opinions public.

    Before going to the crux of the matter, let me lay a background to the true situation of things with regard to the recent hullaballoo amongst organizations that purport to represent the interest of diverse religious groups in the State of Osun. We have Christians represented by the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN); Muslims, represented by the Muslim Students Society of Nigeria (MSSN); the government, led by Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, and other interested parties in the case.

    The religious conflict got to a crescendo last week when an Osun State High Court judge, Justice JideFalola, delivered a judgment in favour of a case instituted by the MSSN against the state government on the right of female Muslim students in state public schools to wear Hijab to their various classes. The judge declared the wearing of Hijab in public schools by female Muslim pupils as legal and appropriate.

     

    Litigation

    “The Muslims had dragged the state government headed by Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola to court over the refusal of some ‘Christian’ public schools to allow their female students wear the Hijab. After the judgment, CAN Osun State Chapter instructed Christian pupils to wear church robes to school if the state government dared implement the judgment.

    To cut the long story short, some five students, following the instruction of the CAN leaders, wore church robes to school this week. In fact, the CAN leaders followed the pupils to schools to make sure they weren’t turned back for wearing their church robes (never mind, they didn’t carry out the action over the failure of some Christian pupils in their examinations).

    Interestingly, a similar suit by the Muslim group in Lagos failed as the judge, Justice Modupe Onyeabor, ruled that the prohibition of the wearing of Hijab over school uniforms within and outside the premises of public schools was not discriminatory. According to her, the ban does not violate Sections 38 and 42 of the 1999 Constitution as claimed by the plaintiffs. The Judge also said Section 10 of the Constitution made Nigeria a secular state and that government must maintain neutrality at all times. Justice Onyeabor held that the government had a duty to preserve the secular nature of the institutions concerned as argued by the then Lagos State Solicitor-General, Mr. Lawal Pedro (SAN). Muslims in Lagos have since proceeded to the Court of Appeal where it is yet to be determined. Why should the case of Osun CAN be different? Aren’t they supposed to be the salt and light of the earth? Aren’t they supposed to be leading by example? Rather than take the legal route, CAN in the state of Osun resorted to self-help, asking students to disobey school rules by wearing unapproved uniforms. The Christians based their argument on one point; the Muslims cannot be allowed to wear hijab in ‘Christian schools”.

     

    Authority for Taking over Schools

    “By Edict No. 14 of 1975, the then military government took over private/missionary schools because, according to available records, “the owners charged exorbitant fees and did not give quality education to students. School buildings were of substandard structures, unqualified teachers were employed, teaching and learning materials were inadequate, while classrooms were over-crowded.”

    Muslims have been wearing Hijab to schools for a very long time. As a Christian, it doesn’t hinder my faith or ability to learn. If the CAN leadership has a problem with it, they should approach the law courts, rather than embark on actions that could cause disaffection amongst the peace loving people of Osun.

    That was the summary of the situation of privately owned schools that prompted the takeover of all such schools in 1975. It should be mentioned here however that the findings of the Western State Government in 1975 was not at variance with, but a replica of one common feature of the reports of the various Educational Review Committees set up at different times in the old three main regions of Nigeria. These include the Oldman’s Report in the old North, Dike’s Report in the old East, and Banjo’s Report in the Western Region. The reports of the various committees intensely reflected the acute immobility that had characterised the inherited colonial system that involved prejudice, high handedness, religious discrimination in pupils’ enrolment, staff recruitment and the general administration of schools.

     

    Validation Decree

    “In fact, the “Takeover of schools Validation Decree” of 1977, which still remains in force, states that, “the hold of government on those schools has afforded the government to be able to provide sustained education to the mass majority of the Nigerian public at an affordable cost, without RELIGIOUS DISCRIMINATION AND BIAS”.

     

    Connotation

    What this means is that there are no Christian or Muslim schools in Osun. There are only PUBLIC schools. The government back in 1976 resolved to keep the names given by the missionaries. That is why you have public schools bearing names such as Ede Muslim Grammar School, Baptist High School, etc. The schools may bear religious names, but they belong to the government/public. It is being financed with public funds. Most of the schools now wear new looks, and have modern learning equipment paid for by ALL citizens of Osun, which include Christians, Muslims, Traditional Worshippers, Agnostics and Atheists alike.

    Therefore, the schools Christians are laying claim to are government schools. They were acquired from diverse sources: religious bodies, individuals, communities, groups, etc in 1975. That was 41 years ago. But for the five students of Baptist High School, Adeeke, Iwo, many Christian pupils in Osun ignored the CAN leadership, toeing the path of decorum and civility. In truth, the schools compound where the orchestrated drama took place housed three schools with a combined population of about 3000 students and we saw no other student wear unapproved garments to school.

    Thank God other citizens did not take the law into their own hands. Imagine if the traditional worshippers – many of whom are in abundance in Osun – decide to start wearing traditional robes such as Bante, Ifunpa, Ofi, etc. Or imagine, for a minute, adherents of Osun religion demanding the wearing of white uniforms only, with white beads to school? Or, children of Sango worshippers, in another instance, insisting on wearing red caps to school, with earrings in the ears of their boys?

    Conclusion

    “Muslims have been wearing Hijab to schools for a very long time. As a Christian, it doesn’t hinder my faith or ability to learn. If the CAN leadership has a problem with it, they should approach the law courts, rather than embark on actions that could cause disaffection amongst the peace loving people of Osun”.

    • Kikiowo Ileowo is the Chief Strategist at Revamp Media.
  • I never ordered use of hijab, says Aregbesola

    I never ordered use of hijab, says Aregbesola

    •Governor: we ’ve recorded 57.46 per cent in education performance

    OSUN State Governor Rauf Aregbesola yesterday clarified that his administration and himself have never ordered the use of Hijab by female Muslim students in public schools.

    He spoke at the “Roundtable on Development Collaborative Framework for Education Development and Advancement” organised by the Development and Advancement in Western Nigeria (DAWN) in Osogbo, the state capital.

    The governor urged those who accused him of ordering the use of Hijab by Muslims  to bring concrete prove to “substantiate their mischievous claims”.

    Aregbesola challenged those accusing him of plunging the state into religious crisis to present a video or voice recording, written speech evidencing  where he commanded or ordered female Muslim students to wear Hijab on their uniform.

    According to him, the programmes introduced into the state’s education rebranding were the resolutions that came out of the education summit organised by his administration after coming into office.

    Aregbesola said the resolution of the summit, headed by Nobel Laureate Professor Wole Soyinka, never considered nor recommended any religion.

    On education in the West, the governor noted that the downward trend in education should be worrisome due to its role in growth process, bringing enlightenment to the human mind,  platform for leadership recruitment and the means for character building and good citizenship.

    The governor stated that when he came to government, the first task of his administration was to convene an education summit, which was chaired by Soyinka.

    He added that all interventions of government in education since inception came from the recommendations of the summit and nothing about religion.

    His words: “There is nothing religious in any of our policies. The fact on ground contradicts our opposition’s claim. The choice of my deputy governor tells it all. I knew she attends a Pentecostal church before I picked her. Everything we have done in the line of education is in line with the resolution of our education summit.

    “Against all speculations, I have not ordered the use of Hijab, I challenge anybody with evidence to come out and show that I have made a proclamation on Hijab.

    “If I have permitted Hijab, will the Muslim have gone to court to challenge it? Is that not contradictory? Is it a crime that I am a Muslim? Is it because I struggle to be a good Muslim that everything I do is being misunderstood? I think I don’t deserve all these lies against me.”

    Aregbesola told the participants that his administration is constructing state-of-the art 100 elementary schools, 50 middle schools and 20 high schools in addition to rehabilitating the existing ones.

    He added that the schools in the state before his intervention would have attracted rebuke from animal rights activists if government had put pigs there.

    The Osun school feeding programme, tagged: O-MEALS, he said, has provided the template for national adoption and implementation of free meals in schools.

    He added that he was invited by the British Parliament twice to share Osun’s experience with the world.

    According to him, his administration’s efforts and intervention in education has been massive, stressing that there has been qualitative and quantitative improvement in the performance of pupils and general education of youths.

    “Those who say we are declining are not being honest. The following data will put a lie to the unfounded allegation of our detractors that the performance of pupils has gone down under our watch.

    “In 2007, the state government put forward 36,171 candidates for WAEC examination out of which 2,483 representing 6.86 per cent had credit pass in five subjects, including English and Mathematics.

    “In 2008, it was 37,715 candidates with 3,813 pass, representing 10.11 per cent. In 2009, it was 39,676 candidates, with 5,545 pass, representing 13.98 per cent. In 2010, it was 43,216 candidates, with 6,777 pass, representing 15.68 per cent. These four years gave us an average of 15.68 per cent.

    “However, our administration started sponsoring candidates for WAEC in 2011. That year, we fielded 53,293 candidates, had 11,672 with pass, representing 21.98 per cent. In 2012, we fielded 51,463 of which 11,431 passed, representing 22.21 per cent. In 2013, we also fielded 47,013 candidates, recorded 9,301 pass, representing 19.78 per cent.

    “In 2014, we sponsored 47,672 candidates, 9,316 of them passed, representing 19.54 per cent. The average performance for our first four years was 20.88 per cent. Compared with the average performance (13.26 per cent) of the three years that preceded us, the percentage improvement in performance during our tenure is a huge 57.46 per cent,” the governor said.

    Mrs. Laoye-Tomori described the gathering as one that would help restore the lost glory of the Southwest educational sector.

    She stated that the time has come for all and sundry to stamp-out all impediment and turn around the education sector not only in the western region but in the whole country.

    The deputy governor identified education as the only mechanism that will salvage the nation from its present socio-economic, political and educational challenges.

    She advocated that collective participation and regional integration among the various governments would lead Southwest out of its challenges.

    She disclosed that the state under the leadership of Aregbesola has successfully implemented pro-masses policies that have contributed and impacted greatly in the lives of the citizenry especially the young ones.

    “I am very happy that this round table meeting would in no doubt improve the qualitative and quantitative performances in education sector of our region as it seek to arrest the apparent decadence and rot in our education.

    “Though it is unfortunate that education in the country seems to be on decline, but as a matter of fact, we must muster efforts to strengthen the superior legacy which we are known for.

    “Governments at various capacities must come together to bailout the nation from the present deplorable state of education in the country. Mrs. Laoye-Tomori said.

     

     

  • Hijab: Muslims urges CAN to respect court judgement

    Hijab: Muslims urges CAN to respect court judgement

    Osun State Muslim Community has urged Osun State chapter of Christian Association of Nigeria to respect the judgement of the State High Court on the issue of use of hijab by female Muslim students in public schools in the state.

    Addressing a press conference in Osogbo, the state capital, the VicePresident of Osun State Community, Alhaji Mustapha Olawuyi said it behooves every responsible individual to abide by judgement of court and appealed to Osun CAN to shun lawlessness in the best interest of justice and peace.

    Olawuyi said there should be no any argument concerning the implementation of the court judgement that granted the fundamental rights of female Muslim students in public schools in the state to use hijab during the school hours.

    A judge of Osun State High Court, Justice Jide Falola had delivered a judgement last Friday in favour of a case instituted by Osun State Muslim Community against the State Government on the right of female Muslim students in public schools in the state to use hijab on their school uniforms.

    “Muslims in Osun State are not concerned with what anybody wears to schools, we can only advise the Christian body to do things within the limit of the law. If Christian body feels that the right of Christians has been violated, the body should approach the court and seek redress.

    “We are not oblivious of the decision of CAN to appeal the verdict of justice Falola but we have not received any notice of appeal. Therefore, we shall urge them to file their appeal timeously and purse same diligently instead of engaging in lawlessness and propaganda,” Olawuyi said.

  • Osun ‘didn’t influence verdict on hijab’

    Osun ‘didn’t influence verdict on hijab’

    Osun State Government yesterday decried the allegation by the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) that it influenced the judgment on the wearing of hijab in schools.

    The local chapter of CAN’s allegation was described as “unfortunate” in a statement by the Solicitor-General/ Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Justice Mr. Abiola Adewemimo.

    The statement said: “It has come to the notice of the Osun State Government    that CAN alleged that the judgment of the High Court of the State  in favour of the right of female pupils to wear hijab in public schools was masterminded by the state government.

    “While we consider this to be unfortunate, we hasten to remind all religious groups, Christians, Muslim and traditional religion worshipers that the Judiciary is an independent arm of government that is responsible and not under the control of the Executive in anyway.

     “We must state that it is unfortunate and very sad that a body of religious leaders could level such an allegation without any proof or evidence. It is a fundamental principle of law that he who asserts carries the burden of proof, which CAN has failed to discharge in the present circumstances!

    “It is unbecoming of any party to a suit to engage in casting aspersions on the Judiciary, deriding the rule of law and challenging constituted authority, particularly when there is a right of  appeal guaranteed by the Constitution of the land. This is an option we are aware CAN has already settled for, having filed a Notice of Appeal in the Court of Appeal on the same matter.

    “For avoidance of doubt, it is the right of any aggrieved party who is dissatisfied with the judgment of the court to appeal.

    “Both parties should remember that the government was a defendant in the suit and has remained neutral on the issue even before the court. The government should, therefore, not be dragged into the matter, as it will continue to maintain its neutrality in matters of this nature, preferring to maintain and promote our roles in the interest of all regardless of their religious affiliations.

    “The Osun State Government hereby urges all people of good conscience to ensure the maintenance of peace in our dear state. Progress and development can never be achieved in the midst of rancour and denigration of the rule of law.”