The Deputy Governor of Osun State Titilayo Laoye-Tomori has debunked speculations that her principal Rauf Aregbesola is on a mission to Islamise the state.
Tomori said the perception stoked by the debate on the right of female Muslim students in state public schools to wear Hijab to their various classes was a “misconception.”
The Deputy Governor who spoke on TVC’s flagship breakfast show, Your View, disclosed that the crisis did not start during Aregbesola’s administration.
“In 2003, there was a major crisis that went on to 2004 and the government came up with a guideline for all public schools in the state,” she said.
She added that : “In the guideline which is still in operation till today, it was stated that students in Muslim faith-based schools could use Hijab but not in Christian faith-based schools, just to resolve the crisis.
“We came in, in November 2010, this had happened in 2004, six years before we came in.”
The Deputy Governor stated that the current administration had to overhaul the school system after an education summit sparking rumours that Aregbesola had an Islamist agenda.
“The communique became the road-map for our education policies and part of it was that we should build schools conducive for learning and teaching so when we started doing that, some people became suspicious because we had to restructure the school system,” she said.
Tomori also disclosed that Christian faith and Muslim faith-based schools were not merged, contrary to what was reported. She said the process was rather a “reclassification.”
“I supervised the reclassification and we were very very conscious of the sensitivity of our people on such things so we did not put Muslims and Christians together in the same school as much as possible,” she stated.
Muslims in the state had dragged the state government to court over the refusal of some ‘Christian’ public schools to allow their female students wear the Hijab.
An Osun State High Court judge, Justice Jide Falola, declared the wearing of Hijab in public schools by female Muslim pupils was legal and appropriate.
After the judgment, CAN Osun State Chapter instructed Christian pupils to wear church robes to school if the state government dared implement the judgment.
Tomori said the crisis has been resolved as the aggrieved party has now sought a legal solution.
“When this crisis came up two weeks ago when the judgement was given, the Christians felt aggrieved so we tried to speak with them formally and informally.
“Aregbesola is a product of a judicial process, so he will never abuse the court process.
“We advised that they should just go to the appellate court which happily they have done, we don’t have a crisis as it were now in the state.”
