*Hijab: MURIC vows to mobilise against hospital over alleged extremism*

*BEING TEXT OF A PRESS RELEASE MADE ON 29 AUGUST, 2016 BY THE MUSLIM RIGHTS’ CONCERN (MURIC) OGUN STATE CHAPTER ON ATTACKS ON MUSLIM NURSES AT THE NEURO-PSYCHIATRIC HOSPITAL ARO, ABEOKUTA MANAGEMENT.*

The Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC), Ogun State
Chapter is constrained at this moment to issue this
press release due to the unwarranted attacks by the
Christian-led Management on Muslim nurses and its
penchant for ecclesiastical pursuit in a Federal
government hospital.
Permit us to state at the beginning that the issue of
hijab (veil) by nurses in hospital is a fundamental
human right and Allah-ordained injunction contained
in the holy Qur’an (Surat an–Nur chapter 24 verses
30 – 31) and even the Bible in I Cor. 11:4-12 that
women should cover their heads. However, we were
not perturbed by the management’s disrespect for
the divine injunction only but its insubordination to
constituted authority which makes it posing great
danger to our society of multi-religious nature.
The Federal Government of Nigeria through the
Nigerian Midwife and Nursing Council in a Circular
dated February 11, 2002 referenced N& MCN/
CMF/721/1/3 stated that the use of hijab is a
constitutional and fundamental right of Muslim
women for anyone who chooses to wear it yet the
Neuro-psychiatric Hospital management has been
denying Muslim nurses the right to use hijab.
The claim by the hospital management that there is
no extant rule or directive approving the use of hijab
is not only pure insubordination but outright
disregard for a federal agency such as the Nursing
and Midwifery Council that issued the circular
authorizing use of hijab by nurses. Besides, every
right thinking person should help us ask the Hospital
management extremists that if there is no directive
to use hijab as it claimed, was there any directive
from Federal government banning hijab use by
nurses? If not, why prevent Muslim nurses from
using hijab if not pure extremism of the Management
and the Islamophobic venture it has vowed to
promote?
When we got the information, we investigated it and
confirmed that the management under the
leadership of Dr A.O Akinhanmi was aware of the
circular yet it was bent on executing the mission of
removing all vestiges of Islam in the Hospital.
In our effort to call the attention of the management
to our displeasure with their extremism and
insubordination, we wrote a protest letter dated and
submitted on August 23, 2016 and acknowledged by
the Provost office but to our dismay, the Hospital
management went weird by assigning and directing
Mr Odigili and Mrs Akeweje to ensure none of the
nurses using hijab is allowed into the ward even
when nuns use theirs without hindrance.
In fact, in a normal clime, the hospital management’s
extremism ought to be met with stiff sanction to
serve as a deterrent and this is what should be done
in this case except the Honourable Minister of Health
and other relevant authorities want to do the usual
practice of let me rub my brethren’s back, The
intimidation has continued since then and if not
checked in time may be reciprocated by resistance of
the Muslim Community and Dr Akinhanmi and his
messengers should be held responsible for the
consequences.
It is obvious that the ensuing peace in Nigeria is
possible because of the perseverance and tolerance
of the Muslims who despite unwarranted provocation
from those who pay lip service to the message of
mutual respect for all religious adherents but never
for once abide by the admonition. If not, how does a
Muslim hijab affect or concern a non-Muslim if not
sheer extremism and intolerance.
Apart from disturbing fellowship everywhere,
tolerant Muslims are still not allowed to practice their
religion and its injunctions and should this have been
from a Muslim, the whole world would have been
engulfed with propaganda. These same set of non-
Muslim extremists went ahead in Ayotoro Road area
of Abeokuta on June 30, 2016 and beat up a student
for using hijab in her residence while the Ogun state
police even collaborated by failing to make any arrest
till date when formally informed.
From the position of the management of Neuro-
psychiatric hospital, Aro, Abeokuta, it is glaring that
it has some pre-emptive agenda and having such
management to continue leading the hospital will
create chaos. Therefore, we call on the Minister of
Health Professor Isaac Adewole and other relevant
arms and agencies of government to intervene by
restraining the management of Neuro-psychiatric
Hospital, Aro from further intimidation and
victimization of Muslim nurses and other staff using
hijab unless it wants us to mobilize in full force to
resist the fanatical disposition of Management of the
hospital. Since they have known their mission, it
would be better to allow them go out of the system
to have time to establish their own health
institutions where their mission would better be
achieved.
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Therefore, we implore and call on the general public
and international organizations to prevail on the
Management of the Hospital to shed its
Christianization agenda for national interest of
promoting justice, fairness and equity. We believe in
live and let others live. Therefore, since no Muslim
has ever forced Christians to wear hijab, why
dictating to us how we should dress when we have
our rights and do not impose on Christians how to
live their lives?
The management should let peace reign and stop
intimidating, victimizing and disturbing Muslims and
ensure unrestrictive permission to Muslim nurses to
use hijab as guaranteed by the constitution which
provides “every person shall be entitled to freedom
of thought, conscience and religion, including
freedom to change his religion or belief, and freedom
(either alone or in community with others, and in
public or in private) to manifest and propagate his
religion or belief in worship, teaching, practice and
observance’’ of which the use of hijab (veil) signifies
manifestation of one’s belief which the constitution
guarantees.

*Luqman Soliu Olawale Muritado*
*Coordinator, Public Relations Officer Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC), Ogun State Chapter.*