Group says judgment weakens religious freedom and vows to support Supreme Court appeal

By Sadiq Abdulfatah

The Muslim Public Affairs Centre (MPAC) has criticised the recent judgment of the Court of Appeal which overturned an earlier High Court decision allowing Muslim female students of the International School, University of Ibadan to wear the hijab as part of their school uniform.

The appeal court, in a judgment delivered on Friday by a three-member panel, set aside the May 22, 2024 ruling of the Oyo State High Court that recognised the right of 11 Muslim students of the school to wear the hijab. The court held that the International School, University of Ibadan, is a private institution because it does not receive government funding and ruled that the Supreme Court’s earlier decision on the use of hijab applies only to publicly funded schools. It also held that the students accepted the school’s dress code when they enrolled.

In a statement signed by its Executive Chairman, Disu Kamor, MPAC described the ruling as unfair, legally flawed and a violation of the constitutional right to freedom of religion. The organisation argued that the judgment was more than a dispute over school uniforms, saying it amounted to an attack on the religious rights of Muslim children.

MPAC insisted that constitutional rights cannot depend on whether a school receives government subventions. It maintained that Section 38 of the 1999 Constitution guarantees every Nigerian the freedom to practise and express their religion, adding that such protection should apply equally to students in both public and private schools.

The group further argued that although ISI may not receive direct government funding, it remains a school established under the University of Ibadan, a federal government-owned institution operating under public supervision. It warned that limiting constitutional protection based on a school’s funding status could encourage discrimination against Muslim students in private and faith-based schools.

MPAC also pointed to what it described as an inconsistency in the judgment. While the Court of Appeal ruled that the students’ religious rights were not violated, it still upheld the lower court’s finding that confining the students to a library for three to four hours because of their hijab was unlawful, although it reduced the damages awarded from one million naira to two hundred thousand naira.

According to the organisation, this contradiction weakens the court’s reasoning and strengthens the case for a final decision by the Supreme Court of Nigeria. It also argued that the judgment departed from the Supreme Court’s earlier decision in the case involving the Lagos State Government and Asiyat AbdulKareem, which affirmed that wearing the hijab is part of the constitutional right to practise Islam.

The organisation commended Justice Fadawu Umar for his dissenting judgment, saying he correctly held that the appeal lacked merit and that the students’ constitutional rights remained protected.

MPAC urged the Court of Appeal to quickly hear and grant the application for a stay of execution filed by the Muslim Rights Concern, so that the school would be prevented from stopping Muslim students from wearing the hijab until the Supreme Court gives its final judgment. It also advised the affected students and their parents to remain calm.

The organisation pledged its support to MURIC, the International School Muslim Parents Forum and the 11 affected students throughout the legal process. It also called on the National Assembly to pass laws protecting the right to religious dress in both public and private schools, while urging the Federal Ministry of Education and state education authorities to introduce regulations preventing schools from adopting policies that discriminate against students based on religion.

Source: Daily Trust