6th March, 2022
PRESS RELEASE:
POLICE HIJAB: IGNORE ADEGBORUWA’S RAZZMATAZZ – MURIC
Mr. Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa (SAN) has declared the
recently approved hijab by the Nigerian Police as illegal. The legal luminary
made the declaration in a public statement issued yesterday 5th
March, 2022. However, the Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) has responded by
telling the Nigerian Police to ignore Adegboruwa’s comment.
MURIC spoke on Sunday, 6th March, 2022
through its chairman in Akwa Ibom State, Ustadh Jibril Ayu-Akpanim.
The statement reads :
“Mr. Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa (SAN) yesterday declared the recently approved
hijab by the Nigerian Police as illegal. Of course we know his antecedents. He
has never shown any support for the civil rights struggles of Nigerian Muslims.
His opposition to the approval of hijab in the police force is therefore
understandable. Adegboruwa is simply staying in character. Our considered
opinion is that the Nigerian Police should ignore his razzmatazz.
“How can a whole SAN oppose a matter of fundamental
human rights? It is paradoxical that those who know the law are the ones who
adopt prejudice against civil rights matters. Adegboruwa’s vituperation sprang
from personal acrobatic religiousity. His articles and comments on hijab crisis
in Kwara and other places symptomize bias, intolerance and a pathological
hatred for Muslims.
“Is this the same senior lawyer who has been
articulate on human rights in Nigeria all these years? We are appalled that he
has elected selective justice. It means Adegboruwa’s definition of human rights
is exclusive. Muslims must not enjoy human rights. Muslims have no place in his
concept of equal rights, freedom and justice. Adegboruwa has exposed himself as
an Muslim-hater nulli secundus.
“Adegboruwa should be stripped of his SAN title. A senior lawyer who
ignored the tyranny of school principals and teachers who have been persecuting
innocent school girls over an ordinary head scarf for decades but jumps up
within 24 hours to oppose a window of liberty for them does not deserve the
highest decoration in his profession.
“The SAN is asking how catholics and Anglican women
police should dress now that their Muslim colleagues have been allowed to use
hijab. He should tell us how catholic and Anglican police women dress in
Britain, America, Canada, etc. By the way, is Adegoruwa telling us that he has
never seen pictures of Mary the mother of Jesus (peace be upon him)? Has he
ever seen Mary without hijab on her head? Bigotry is indeed an almost incurable
decease.
“Adegboruwa should ask catholic and Anglican police women to demand
their own form of dress code if such a thing exists in real life. He will be
surprised to see that Nigerian Muslims will not oppose their demand. Islam
condemns pettiness and selfishness. It teaches Muslims to live and let others
live. Anyway, Adegboruwa may advise Catholic and Anglican police women to dress
like Mary, the much honoured mother of Jesus (peace be upon him).
“Adegboruwa should know that the current uniform of
the police satisfies Nigerian Christians because it was designed ab initio
by the British colonialists who, essentially, were Christians. That is why
Nigerian Christians have never complained about uniforms in schools and in the
security agencies.
“Muslim interest was not taken into consideration
by the colonialists when they were designing uniforms for schools and the
security agencies. Justice and the need for inclusiveness demands that the
design should be reviewed in post-independence period. That is why even the
recent approval must be seen as belated.
“Quarter-finally, has Adegboruwa forgotten the outcome of the hocus
pocus created in Osun State when the court approved hijab and the Christian Association
of Nigeria (CAN) incited Christian students to wear ridiculous garbs like
church choir, Sango, Oya and masquerade dresses to school? How long did it
last? He should go to the state today to see how the female Muslim students
shine with their hijab. No matter how fast falsehood runs and for how long,
truth will catch up with it in a single day.
“Semi-finally, we advise Adegboruwa to go to court
if he feels so strongly that Muslim female police women have no right to use
hijab. He may also want to go further by approaching the international court at
the Hagues to stop British, American and Canadian police women and soldiers
from using same. Islamophobia in the legal profession is not new to us. The
Amasa Firdaus matter on our minds. The learned silk may do well to consult his
colleagues at the highly esteemed Council of Legal Education and the Body of
Benchers before plunging into his prejudiced, ill-advised, ill-fated and
anti-Muslim adventure.
“Finally, we congratulate all female Muslim police
women in Nigeria on their newly won freedom. Nigerians have seen many of them
on the streets wearing the hijab with their uniform in the past few days. They
look awesome, fantabulous, fantasmagoric and fantaslamic. We urge them to continue
using it. Without a court pronouncement, no lawyer from anywhere can force them
to remove it. Not even a SAN.”
Ustadh Jibril Ayu-Akpanim,
Chairman,
Akwa Ibom Chapter,
Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC).
No comments:
Post a Comment