HIJAB: Kwara Govt Says Christian Schools Shut by Churches Have been Opened by Task Force
Kwara State government has claimed that said “all the 10 schools involved in the hijab controversy had been fully opened hours after the state government directed all the principals and teachers in the affected schools to resume for academic activities.”
The press secretary in the state ministry of education and human capital development, Kamaldeen Yakub Ali-Agan, revealed this in a statement on Friday, saying “The schools were opened by a government task force which moved round the metropolis to ensure that the directive is followed and that teachers and students are protected and allowed to begin academic activities.
The task force was deployed on Friday, after government had ordered the reopening of the schools on Wednesday.
Christian missions however insisted that they would not allow the use of hijab by Muslim female students in their schools.
The state Teaching Service Commission, on Thursday, directed teachers of the affected schools to report to their respective schools on Friday, when the teachers arrived promptly at their respective schools, they were locked out by some churches, which insisted that they would not allow students or teachers to resume unless the state government rescinded its decision on wearing of hijab in Christian mission schools.
The statement said “At Cherubim and Seraphim College, Sabo Oke, Ilorin, some church leaders locked and barricaded the entrance to the college until government officials escorted by security officials opened the school gate. At Baptist LGEA primary and secondary schools, Surulere, Ilorin, everything went on peacefully with teachers and students seen in their classrooms.
“The government task force, led by officials from the Ministry of Education and Human Capital Development and the Teaching Service Commission, reassured members of the public, especially parents and teachers, that the unfortunate incident of Wednesday had been put behind the state and that the schools are safe for schoolchildren to resume learning in earnest.”
The affected mission schools closed by the government include C&S College, Sabo Oke; St. Anthony College, Offa Road; ECWA School, Oja Iya; Surulere Baptist Secondary School; and Bishop Smith Secondary School, Agba Dam.
Others were CAC Secondary School, Asa Dam; St. Barnabas Secondary School, Sabo Oke; St. John School Maraba; St. Williams Secondary School, Taiwo Isale; and St. James Secondary School, Maraba, all in Ilorin, the state capital.