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Tag: veil

  • Army condemns men for allegedly removing woman’s veil

    Army condemns men for allegedly removing woman’s veil

    •Muslim community protests
    •Ambode: hijab not banned in Lagos

    The Army on Sunday dissociated itself from the action of its men who allegedly removed the veil of a muslim woman in Lagos last Friday.

    The incident has sparked protests from the Muslim community, which is calling on the Presidency to make its stand known on the use of hijab.

    Governor Akinwunmi Ambode condemned the soldiers’ action, saying hijab is not banned in Lagos State.

    Army’s 81 Division 1 Public Relations Officer Col James Samuel said the military did not direct soldiers to harrass women in hijab.

    The army, Samuel said, was unaware of the incident.

    Two soldiers last Friday in Meiran, Ojokoro Local Council Development Area of Lagos removed the woman’s veil, claiming that its use had been banned.

    Islamic organisations and clerics took to social media to condemn the action.

    According to an eyewitness, Adetutu Oluwa, the soldiers allegedly alighted from their vehicle on sighting a woman dressed in veil and started harassing her.

    One of them, she claimed, forcefully removed the veil, popularly referred to as Niqab, from the woman’s head and warned her never to use it in public again.

    “After removing the veil, one of the soldiers said: ‘This thing is not allowed in our country again. You can use it in your house.’  They both walked back to their vehicle with the veil,” Oluwa alleged.

    According to her, it took the intervention of passersby and sympathisers for the woman to get her veil back.

    “On sensing cold reaction from the people, the soldiers dropped the veil on the floor, entered their vehicle and zoomed off,” she said.

    Oluwa in a programme monitored on Star 101.5 FM on Saturday said: “I was traumatised by the situation even though I wasn’t the one harassed.”

    According to islamic organisations and scholars, the President’s statement on the possibility of banning hijab because many Boko Haram suicide bombers hide under it to wreak havoc, is being used as excuse to harass Islamic women nationwide.

    “Everything must be done to balance national security requirements with religious rights and obligations of citizens protected as enshrined in the constitution,” said Mallam Saheed Ashafa, Muslim Students’ Society of Nigeria (MSSN), Lagos State Area Unit president.

    A lawyer, Mutiat Orolu-Balogun, described the soldiers’ action as callous, saying: “It is easy to point fingers if you are not sacrificing or not being inconvenienced. Some sections are easy to clamour for the ban on hijab because they are not using it or they are looking for an excuse not to or they want everyone to be naked like them. Whichever is their wish or thought as the case may be, they need fresh orientation.”

    Lagos State University (LASU) lecturer Mrs Ganiya Adenle said: “When there is a fire, I don’t see fire fighters killing the smoke, they rather go to the base of the fire. The government should go to the root of Boko Haram, find out those behind it and stop killing the smoke of Boko Haram.”

    Dousing tension, Governor Ambode said hijab has not been banned in Lagos State.

    He spoke on Saturday during the inauguration of The Muslim Congress (TMC) Imams at TMC Dawah Centre in Ijeshatedo.

    Ambode said the government has not directed security operatives to go on such mission.

    The governor said: “I want to assure you that government does not know anything about what happened on Friday at Meiran. Lagos State has not banned hijab. The Federal government has not banned hijab and we are warning all security operatives to desist from all acts that can lead to religious tension.”

    Ambode appealed to the crowd to remain law-abiding and not to take the laws into its hands, promising to look into the case.

    “Nobody is above the law. Muslims should be free to practise their religion. Christians should feel free to practise their religion,” he said.

    Ambode, represented by Home Affairs Commissioner Dr Abdul Abdul Hakeem AbdulLateef, thanked the congress for its support during the last elections.

    “Personally, I don’t think that banning hijab is the solution to the menace of terrorism,” AbdulLateef said, adding: “Ever since journalism has been practised as a profession, there are journalists who have come out with articles and information capable of creating tension and derailing the government. No government has because of that banned journalism.

    “We cannot because of the excesses of some people begin to trample on the fundamental human rights of others.

    “It is good that all religious organisations are taking it on board. They are now using metal detectors to ensure nobody comes in with bomb. This is the message that all churches and mosques are taking on board.”

    The governor noted that religious leaders are critical stakeholders in the development of the state and the country.

    “We’ll not because of what is happening now violate our own constitution. We recognise the fact that section 38 of the constitution allows the freedom of religion either as individuals on in community with others to observe and propagate their religion. We will never allow any security officials to take the law into its hands.  This is our electoral promise to Lagosians,” Ambode said.

  • Campaign uses veil to call for Chibok girl’s release

    Campaign uses veil to call for Chibok girl’s release

    A new social campaign on Chibok girls, Boko Halal (education is good), has been launched by Noah’s Ark, a creative agency. With the hashtag #Put Yourself in Their Shoes, it allows individuals to empathise with the girls and their families by uploading their faces behind a veil with a mobile image-resizing app designed by the initiator. ADEDEJI ADEMIGBUJI reports.

    Noah’s Ark has embarked on another  cause-marketing campaign for the Chibok girls this year. The agency’s trajectory last year with Boko Halal campaign, “Yes, We are Boko Halal”, was rejected by traditional media, perhaps, for fear of having their offices in the North attacked by the insurgents.

    This time around, the agency is putting faces of President Muhammadu Buhari, his Chadian and Cameroonian counterparts, Idris Derby and Paul Biya, behind a pudah or veil, made by a mobile image-resizing app, in an attempt to deepen the campaign with the theme: #Putyourselfintheirshoes.

    “Like we did to these leaders by putting them in the shoes of the missing Chibok girls and their families as a way of sharing their pains and calling other leaders to action to save them, Nigerians can also go to the app to put their faces behind the pudah, as a way of showing empathy and continue the BringBackOurGirls campaign,” said the Group Managing Director, Noah’s Ark, Mr. Lanre Adisa.

    A daring effort by an advertising agency, the campaign has been archived in the Ads of The World (AoTW), the world’s largest advertising archive and community showcasing creative adverts from around the world, barely a week after it was released. It generated about 2,358 views within one week on Youtube, as at last check by The Nation on Wednesday, while conversations about the campaign continues to heighten on AdsoftheWorld.com and Youtube.

    With the failure of the print media to deliver the needed impact last year, the agency has fully embraced digital media to spread the campaign. Some of the platforms are twitter, YouTube and mobile app to deepen conversation and engage various demography.

    Adisa said the decision to approach the Chibok Girls issue through an advertisement campaign was borne out of the concern for the girls and their parents who, for over a year, have been in agony on the whereabouts of their children.

    It would be recalled that the girls’ campaign, hashtag #BringBackOurGirls went viral last year, attracting high-profile political figures  such as the First Lady of the United States (US), Mrs. Michelle Obama; former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and the British Prime Minister, David Cameron, who endorsed the social media campaign. But the conversation on social media didn’t lead to any political action.

    With the new creative vigour employed by Noah’s Ark this year, Adisa believes President Buhari has put some measures in place to see that the girls are rescued, and that more still needs to be done by the international community, and especially, the corporate world in terms of sustaining the momentum and the awareness that nearly 300 souls are still missing and are somewhere out there expecting to be rescued one day.

    Perhaps, this is why the agency, image-resizing that mobile app is meant to make everyone put their faces behind the pudah, like those of the three presidents-Buhari, Derby and Biya, whose countries are strategic to curbing the activities of the insurgency to show empathy for the missing girls and their families.

    The three presidents have continued to share intelligence on ways to curb the activities of the insurgency just as it is expected of every Nigerian, Chadian and Cameroonian to assist the government in any capacity to save the missing girls.

    However, the print campaign material is designed in three different formats. The posters show the pictures of three African presidents, Muhammadu Buhari of Nigeria, Idris Derby of Chad and Paul Biya of Cameroon, all wearing veils to depict the Islamic religious coloration of the crisis.

    It also displays flyers where there are just figures of veils without faces, symbolising that the kidnapped girls could just be anybody’s daughter, hence the need for all to demand that something urgent be done to effect their release; while the third print material are stickers with faceless veils in black on white background.

    According to the firm’s Creative Director, Bolaji Alausa, the online materials are equally potent, as the pictures paint sad reminders of the precarious situation of the girls in captivity.

    One is a photograph of a traditional grinding stone with a hand grenade on it, a symbol of feminine action in limbo, while the second photograph shows a mortar with a rocket launcher in place of the pestle, also portraying what other uses some of the girls may have been put into.

    Meanwhile, the agency is also involving the Muslim communities in the fight by going to popular mosques to encourage Muslim scholars to preach against terrorism. An online video campaign was designed to awaken the consciousness of the Muslim community to show more pragmatic concern on the matter. It shows a scene in a mosque where they hide the shoes Muslims usually leave behind at the mosque entrance while praying. When they finished the prayers they began to look for the shoes. It was then they were reminded of the missing girls and the need to spare some minutes in prayers for them. The import is that if we can be concerned with the loss of mere pairs of shoes, which we can buy in the market, how come the seeming apathy towards the missing of about 300 girls? Food for thought!

    With 22 likes and no dislike, the Noah’s Ark cause related campaign, is hopeless but prays that the girls will return.

    But the online conversations showed that the world has not forgotten the girls.

    “Hashtag slacktivism didn’t work, so let’s try praying? Maybe if that doesn’t work we could try wishing on a shooting star!,” said Jebus 484 pencils on Aug 07, at 22:47. Another commentator, Keith Charnley, on Youtube campaign said: “The greatest challenge will be when the survivors eventually return to their communities – if they ever can. The Army is doing its best under good leadership. It is criminal what happened in northern Nigeria. I dread to think what the brave soldiers will find once they move on the camp or camps where the girls are held.”

    Whether the campaign works or not, the truth is that all efforts to get the girls back have proved futile aft0er 486 days in captivity, but it is good that an ad agency is spending its resources to show care and concern for the girls, by calling people to action.

  • The torn veil (2)

    Dennis arrived my home that evening shortly before we were to have dinner. I was in my room still dressing up when Harry, one of my younger brothers called out to me that he had just driven into our compound. I quickly finished up and rushed out of the room.

    I met him outside in the courtyard where he was standing talking with Harry.

    He gave me a peck on the cheek and rubbing his hands together declared:

    “I can’t wait to taste those delicious dishes you’ve been preparing which you told me about on

    the phone.”

    Harry butted in.

    “It’s Mum that did most of the cooking o! All Sister Meg did was to taste them and…”

    “Shut up your mouth! Silly boy! What do you know about cooking?” I said sternly.

    Dennis laughed then said:

    “Then I will have to thank your Mum specially for all her effort.”

    “Don’t mind him. Let’s go jo!” and taking his hand, led him inside the house.

    My parents were sitting in our large parlour, waiting for us.

    As I did the introductions, I noticed a strange look appear on my Mum’s face. It was as if she had seen a ghost or something worse. It happened fleetingly for the next moment, she was all smiles and conviviality. I thought my eyes were deceiving me so I didn’t think much about it.

    That first meeting with my family went extremely well. My dad especially was really taken with Dennis and he spoke glowingly about him.

    “I like that young man. You’ve picked the right one this time. At least he’s better than all those ‘waz up’ boys with their strange dress styles you used to hang around with when you were in school,” he said sometime later. I had just seen Dennis off and had returned to meet both of them talking about him. At least, my dad was for my Mum was surprisingly quiet.

    “That was years ago, Dad. I was much younger then,” I stated as I flopped down on the couch next to my Mum.

    “I know. But I used to be worried that you might do something foolish. Like getting pregnant and ending up marrying one of those rascals. Imagine having a son-in-law who plaits his hair and wears earrings like a woman!” he said in a jocular tone. Harry, who was hovering around whooped with laughter. I picked up a cushion and threw it at him…

    ***

    After that first day, Dennis became a regular visitor to my home. He got along well with all my family. Even my immediate younger brothers Joe and Paul who were often away from home, liked him when they eventually met him. Paul had just graduated from the Uni and was doing his service year in Cross Rivers State, while Joe, an engineer worked on an oil-rig offshore. He only came home once in a while when he was off-duty.

    One Saturday, I arrived home from a shopping trip with my best friend, Pat when I saw Dennis’ car parked in the courtyard. Though I wasn’t expecting him, I was glad he had come to visit.

    There was nobody in the sitting room and when I peeped into the kitchen, my Mum was not there. I heard voices in the balcony at the back of the house so I climbed up.

    My Mum was with Dennis. They were talking earnestly together, a bit of their conversation drifting to me.

    “It’s only proper that we tell her.”

    “No, we can’t. The shock will be too much for her. Why bring up the past?” my Mum was saying. I wondered what it was all about as I stepped up to join them.

    “My dear, you are back,” my mother stated, looking a bit startled.

    I went up to Dennis and linked hands with him.

    “Honey, when did you arrive? And what were you both talking about so seriously? Hope there’s no problem?” I asked my Mum.

    “None, dear. Why don’t you get Dennis a drink while I start dinner,” she said.

    “So, how was your day?” Dennis asked after my Mum had left and we were alone.

    “Fine. Pat sends greetings. Guess who I saw today at the mall?” I said.

    “Who?” he asked with some interest as we headed towards the stairs on our way downstairs.

     

    Opposition

    About two months later, I announced to my family that Dennis and I had fixed a date for our wedding.

    “It’s in six months time so we can have enough time to prepare,” I stated.

    My dad, who looked very pleased at the news, offered to contribute substantially to the ceremony.

  • The torn veil (1)

    The first day I took my fiancé, Denis home to meet my parents, was supposed to be a happy occasion for the family. My parents had known about my relationship with him for sometime and had always wanted me to bring him home. But I had delayed their meeting him until I was really sure he was the right man for me.

    A few months ago, I finally took Dennis to meet them. As things turned out, it was one meeting that should never have taken place. Why? You might ask. Well, read my story and you will get the answer.

    ***

    Meeting Dennis

    I first met my fiancé at work. In fact, he was my supervisor and boss at the company I worked with when I newly joined. Initially, I was wary about him because of my experience with my former boss at the last place I worked. That man gave me a tough time all because I turned down his advances to date him. And this was a man that was married with seven children!

    Anyway, I should not have worried about Dennis. He treated me fairly, more like a younger sister than a boss. He was always giving advice both on the job and even in personal matters too like relationships. Maybe because I was the new girl in the office, a lot of the guys there wanted to date me. They kept pestering me for dates and would not give up even when I had no interest in them.

    “Don’t take them too seriously, Meg. That’s what they do whenever a new female staff comes. Especially a pretty one like you,” my boss advised me one day after observing one of my co-workers, a notorious womaniser giving me his ‘manifesto.’

    With time, I got to know more about my ‘oga’. Though of mature age, he was about 35, he was not married and seemed to have no fiancé. It was a colleague of mine who told me his story one afternoon during our lunch break.

    “He was engaged to be married about three years ago. But unfortunately, his fiancé died before the wedding,” Esther, my colleague revealed.

    “What happened?” I asked with interest.

    “Well, I heard she was sick. They said she had cancer, something to do with her blood or so,” she added.

    “What a pity,” I said shaking my head. I felt sorry for my boss for losing his woman so young.

    “Yes. He must have really loved her for since then, he has never been close to any woman again, whether in the office or outside,” she noted.

    She could be right. In the one year or so that I had known my boss, I had never seen any female visitor coming to see him at work.

    Sometime later, my boss was transferred to another department of the company. And that was when our relationship changed. From being just my boss, we became friends and grew closer than we were before.

    He started inviting me out for drinks and even took me out to dinner. It was while we were eating that he made a confession to me. He told me how he had been attracted to me while we were working together but could not do much about it back then.

    “Why?” I asked, feeling curiously thrilled at his words. The truth was that, I had had feelings for him for sometime too but had kept mum about the way I felt.

    He took a sip of water before he said:

    “I didn’t want anything to affect our working relationship. But you are no longer under me now. So…”

    From that day, we grew closer. With time, he took me to his home and I met some of his relations. Dennis and I were very compatible, despite the eight year age gap between us. We seemed to like the same things and had the same goals and dreams about life. As our relationship blossomed, I fell more deeply in love with him. He was my ideal man and in him I saw the man I wanted to be with always.

    He seemed to feel the same way too. About seven months after our relationship started, Dennis proposed to me. That day, we had gone to the cinema to watch a movie. It was on the way back that he stopped the car and asked me to marry him. I was so happy that I had flung my arms around him and said a loud, ‘Yes!’

    Before then, Dennis had been asking to meet my parents, to get to know my family members. But I had always told him to be patient, that when the time was right, he would get to meet them.

    A few days after we got engaged, I told my mum that I would be bringing him home.

    “Really? That’s good. I can’t wait to see the young man that has made my daughter look so happy!” she enthused.

    “Ah! Mum! I always look happy!” I stated.

    “But not like this. There’s a glow about you that was not there before. You must really love him,” she said.

    I nodded.

    “A lot, Mum. I can’t imagine what my life will be without him,” I said.

    “He must be really special. What does he look like? Is he handsome?” and she began bombarding me with questions about my fiancé.

    “Ah! Mum! Take it easy! You will get to meet him soon so don’t be so anxious!” I stated laughing.

    My Mum and I were very close. Maybe because I am the first child and only girl out of four children. Sometimes we were more like sisters than mother and daughter. Often, when we went out together, people often mistook us for siblings. We looked so much alike and my mum looked so young for her age. You see, she married quite early and had me when she was still very young, as a teenager in fact.

    I loved her so much and because of our closeness, there was nothing I didn’t tell her including details about my love life.

    The weekend that Dennis was to visit, was spent by my mum and I cooking and cleaning our home.

    “I want him to know he’s getting a wife who can cook, that he’s not getting a Mr Biggs wife!” she remarked as she stirred a sizzling pot of soup with an enticing aroma that pervaded the whole house.

    I laughed, full of joy and anticipation at the meeting of my beloved with my family…

     

    To be continued

     

    What happened when Dennis met Meg’s parents? Keep a date with us next Saturday!

     

    Names have been changed to protect the identities of the narrator and other individuals in the story.

     

    Send comments/suggestions to  psaduwa@yahoo.com or psaduwa007@gmail.com

  • History of the wedding veil

    History of the wedding veil

    There are many stories of the origin of a bride’s veil. Some say that the veil was introduced in ancient Rome. People of that era believed that evil spirits would be attracted to the bride, so they covered her face with a veil in order to conceal her features and confuse them. The definition of veil is to “obscure, shroud, mask or cover, so perhaps that is how the bridal “veil” got its name.

    It’s also said the in medieval times, the veil was used to protect her from “the evil eye” and was a symbol of purity, chastity, and modesty.

    Others say the the origin of the bridal veil was due to the circumstances of an arranged marriage. In days past, men bargained with an eligible young lady’s father for their hand in marriage. AFTER the ceremony, the veil was lifted to reveal the brides features. This was to keep a groom from backing out of the deal if he didn’t like what he saw.

    Some say that the veil was used in days past as a symbol of a bride’s submission and willingness to obey her husband.

    Certain lengths of bridal veils got their names from how or where they were worn. At one time, Cathedral Veils were only worn in wedding that took place in cathedrals.

    Well, times have changed the meaning of the tradition of wearing a bridal veil! Now, wearing a bridal veil: signifies a special event  A Wedding!

    signifies joy highlights the bride’s appearance and features is the final crowning touch! Bridal Gowns are transformed with the addition of a veil.

    The past history of wearing a bridal veil has given way to new traditions. Over the past 20 years, traditions surrounding the bridal veil have changed even more. Veils were worn more frequently over the face (a blusher). Now, you don’t have to wear if over your face all all if you don’t want to.

    Brides of our day are making their own wedding veil history! Star Jones of the popular Television show “The View” wore a 27′ FOOT long Veilthe longest known veil in history. It’s dubbed the “Star Cathedral Veil”. Her veil was two feet longer than Princess Diana’s Bridal Veil.

    It also used to be that brides marrying for the second time were not supposed to wear a veil, especially a white veil. Nowadays, it’s perfectly acceptable to wear a veil (even a white one) for a second marriage if you want to! (Don’t let anyone try to tell you different. It’s YOUR day! If you want to wear it, go ahead!)

    The wearing of a bridal gown and veil is one of the big days in a woman’s lifeChoose what YOU feel comfortable in and enjoy your special day!