Confusion in Osun as students wear hijab, choir robe, fetish attires to school

•‘Allahu Akbar’, church songs and incantations boom at assembly ground

There was commotion and confusion in Baptist High School, Iwo, Osun State, on yesterday, as students of the school abandoned the general uniform provided by Governor Rauf Aregbesola-led administration and wore hijabs, purdah and choir garments to the school.

The development disrupted the usual assembly prayer, as the students declined to listen to their principal and teachers, but chose to sing different songs of their religious faiths.

Their action, it was gathered, was to protest against the general uniform introduced by the state government, as part of its schools reclassification programme.

Investigation indicated that those who wore Jalamia and hijabs with roses in their hands rendered Allahu Akbar and other Muslim songs, while those with celestial sultana, church choir uniforms, rendered Christians songs.

Students with traditional background wore fetish veils, Orunmila attires and were making incantations to consult deities while at the assembly ground.

Worried by the development, the teachers and principals were said to have ordered that they should go to their different classrooms, but shortly the students engaged in fighting, over religious superiority.

When contacted, the school’s principal, Mr. Arowolo, said the school authorities had informed the concerned authorities in the state to take necessary step.

Speaking on the development, the state Commissioner for Information and Strategies, Sunday Akere, said that the government was aware of the incident, assuring that prompt action would be taken to address it.

He added that a delegation from the state Ministry of Education had been sent to ascertain what actually went wrong.