Hijab Crisis: Kwara Government Threatens Mission School Teachers With Sanctions

The Kwara State Government has threatened to sanction teachers and workers of 10 mission schools earlier shut down in Ilorin with sanctions over the hijab crisis in the state, if they fail to resume by today, Friday.

The Executive Chairman of the Kwara state Teaching Service Commission, Malam Bello Abubakar, issued the directive in a statement in Ilorin on Thursday.

“Any staff who fails to report for duty will face the full wrath of the law, as the state government will not condone any act of insurbordination,” he noted.

Abubakar was silent on any measure the state government had put in place to quell the brewing religious crisis.

In the statement by the Press Secretary of the commission, Amogbonjaye Peter, the chairman, said, “The teachers’ resumption has become necessary in order to prepare the final-year students for their external examinations.”

Bello warned all stakeholders against taking the law into their hands, adding that a peace meeting, which had failed to yield any tangible results, would still continue between the government and the stakeholders.

The chairman added, “The government regrets the inconveniences the shutdown might have caused the students, explaining that the action was taken in the interest of peace.”

Bello, appealed to parents and members of the public to remain calm as the government was on top of the situation since its meeting with stakeholders was still ongoing.

According to Daily Post, the directive to resume may not be unconnected with the resolve of the Christian community leaders to defy the government’s directive and sustain their resistance against the use of the hijab and the demand to return mission schools to their original owners.

However, the state government is contesting the stance of the Christian community saying, there will be no compromise on the demands as the government had taken over the schools since 1974, with the backing of the Nigerian constitution and Kwara State laws.

Although the matter of the hijab use is still in court, the government went ahead a few weeks ago to state that hijab should be allowed in all schools in the state.