Again, Kwara govt shuts 10 schools over hijab controversy
Kwara government directs the 10 secondary schools where the use of the hijab is disputed not to reopen today.
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Kwara State Ministry of Education has reversed its decision to reopen the 10 grant-aided schools, where the use of hijab is disputed.
According to the Ministry’s permanent secretary, Kemi Adeosun, the schools earlier told to reopen on Monday, will remain shut.
She said the decision was taken for safety reasons.
“The government therefore directs schoolchildren and teachers in the affected schools to remain at home until the contrary is announced.
“The government remains committed to fairness, pluralism, and respect for the law and rights of every citizen at all times,” the statement read.
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Home » News » Hijab controversy: Kwara rescinds decision to reopen 10 schools as Church seeks God’s intervention
Hijab controversy: Kwara rescinds decision to reopen 10 schools as Church seeks God’s intervention
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Kwara on Monday rescinded its decision to reopen 10 schools shut on account of a controversy surrounding the wearing of hijab by their students, citing safety reasons.
The reversal of the government’s decision came just as one of the affected founders of the schools, the Cherubim and Seraphim (C&S) Church, ended a seven-day prayer session also on Monday.
The government shut the schools on Feb. 19 as the controversy seemed unending.
By Hammed Shittu
There is no doubt that the current impasse in Kwara – with the sobriquet State of Harmony – over the order of the state government to all public schools, including schools founded by Christian missions in the state, to allow female Muslim students wear Hijab to school, has heightened tension among stakeholders in the two leading religions – Islam and Christianity.
The hijab controversy, according to THISDAY checks, may not only inhibit peaceful co-existence and affect academic performance of the students who are currently at home due to the decision of the state government to close 10 schools founded by Christian missions, if care is not taken, may lead to academic failure among the students in the upcoming National Examination Council (NECO) and West African Examination Council (WAEC) exams, and even snowball into religious crisis in the state.
Your approval of hijab in our schools ill-informed, Baptist leaders tell Kwara govt
“What we are saying is that no one, not the Kwara State Government or even the Federal Government, can force Hijab on our children or on our schools. 2 min read
The Kwara Baptist Conference says it will not allow the use of the hijab in its grant-aided schools, describing the state governor’s order permitting the use as ill-informed.
The state government had last month approved the use of the head covering in all public schools in the state.
The government had, in February, temporarily closed 10 grant-aided secondary schools in Ilorin, the state capital, following a crisis in the schools over the use of hijab.