Hijab: How I suffered victimisation, rejection in public institutions - FOMWAN Amirah, Alhaja Rofiah Sanni (Part 1)

The newly appointed Amirah (President) Federation of Muslim Women Associations in Nigeria (FOMWAN), Alhaja Rofiah Idowu Sanni has revealed how she survived victimisation and rejections as a teacher for using Hijab in public schools throughout her 35-year teaching career.

Sanni, a retired Principal, who now wears niqob (veil) revealed that she was rejected twice in public schools because of her Hijab.

She made the revelation in an exclusive with Muslim News on Tuesday, few days after she emerged the 10th Amirah of the faith-based Muslim women organisation.

Narrating her ordeal as a young teacher some years ago, Alhaja Sanni said she was rejected in the first and second public school in Oyo State, adding that, "to avoid rejection in the third school I was posted to, I came up with a plan, which helped me overcome the incessant molestation for using Hijab."

According to her, "All glory and adoration are due to Allah. The most important thing in life is for people to know you for who you are. Before I started using niqob, everyone knows that no single person can toy with my Islam. Not only that, they know that I am also an advocate of Islam.

"The day I got my letter of assumption of duty, the first school I was posted to rejected me after seeing me on Hijab. That was in May, 1985. When I got to another school, I was rejected again.

"The irony is that I was to teach Physics and they were seriously in search of a Physics teacher, but just because of my mode of dressing, I was rejected."

Sanni while speaking on how she sailed through the hurdles, narrated, "When I realised that it was because of Hijab they didn't accept me, I came up with a plan when I was going to the third school. Sadly, the ministry didn't see anything wrong in their action.

"When I got to the third school, it's IMG Grammar School, Sharp Corner, Oke Ado, Ibadan, I removed my Hijab on getting to the gate. It wasn't convenient for me but I said to myself, I must get this appointment. The principal and the staff were so much happy that a physics teacher had been posted to their school. Immediately, they gave me letter of resumption of duty. I was given the timetable and in no time, everybody became my friend.

"I did same the second day by removing my Hijab at the gate. I did that for 4 days, Monday to Thursday. During the period, I made sure I didn't go late to school . As early as 6:30/7am, I was already in the school. That made the principal to like me specifically. In fact, I started assisting her children in thier physics assignment.

"On Friday of that week, I went to the school with Hijab. Then the Principal started shouting, saying what kind of dressing is this? Then, I pretended as if I am not Yoruba, because I had been speaking in English while in school. At the assembly ground, she was telling someone "Ni bo le ti ri Omo Alata yi", meaning, where did you see this uncultured lady? *is it alata? And, does that mean uncultured?*

"So, she finally confronted me, asking, what's wrong? I also asked her, what is wrong? I repeated everything she was saying.

"Why did you wear Hijab to the school today? Didn't you know it's not allowed?" She asked me, but I pretended I didn't understand what she was saying in Yoruba.

"When she couldn't bear it again, she called me to her office to challenge me again. Well, I changed the story for her. I told her, mummy, today is Friday, I will have to go to the mosque for Jum’at and my prayer will not be accepted without putting on Hijab. Then, she said, "okay, there is no problem. Just for Jum'at, right?"

"But on Monday, I used cape Hijab and she couldn't bear it again, despite the fact that I didn't use a big Hijab. That was the beginning of our quarrel. As we had this misunderstanding over Hijab, I didn't go late to school. I was dedicated to my work. In fact, I resuscitated the MSSN in the school and everything was going on well, not knowing that she had gone to the ministry and Teaching Service Commission to report me.

"But, Alhamdulillah, Alhaji Adekilekun from Ede, who was a board member of the commission sent for me. He related everything that happened and my principal's request to transfer me because of Islam, specifically my Hijab.

"I told him I don't want to be transferred, unless the woman is transferred. That place is even far away from my home, but because she has requested for my transfer, I will not leave. I left and went back to school.

"She called for a staff meeting and started spewing hate speeches. I stood up to the challenge. I told her it's because of Islam you hate me and I will not leave this school. As Allah will have it, few days later, she was demoted from Principal to VP for another reason, though I didn't want that for her. But because of her hatred for Islam, Allah disgraced her from that school.

"A few months after that, l requested for my transfer to a nearby school to my house, because l was heavily pregnant," she added.

Journey to Niqob

Alhaja Sanni, the wife of Alhaji Kunle Sanni, the Chairman of Oyo State Muslim Community, told Muslim News that she started using niqob when she became a principal.

"As a Principal, it wasn't easy for anybody to tell me not to use either the Hijab or Niqob," the New Amirah of FOMWAN said.

Alhaja Sanni however related the insult she got from a fellow Muslim for obeying Allah's command on dressing.

"There was a time a man from the Ministry came to my school before using niqob. He said, what's this nonsense you're putting on? I replied him, what is the nonsense? Unfortunately that man happens to be a Muslim.

"I told him don't come here to disgrace your fellow Muslim if you don't understand that it is an injunction from Allah for a mature female Muslim to cover herself by wearing the Hijab, whenever she is going outside her home.

"Putting on Hijab is what Allah asks us to do and that's what I am doing. The man later begged me after I reported the incident to NACOMYO. Before I knew it, the story had gone viral with people lambasting him and then, he came to beg me.

"So, when I started using niqob, the commissioner will come, other people in the education sector will come. I don't care whatever they say because I am doing it for Allah, not them. They will later turn everything to joke by saying 'Alhaja, we'll like to see your face.'

"Alhamdulillah Rabbil aalamin, we have niqob sisters teaching in our schools who also faced rejections initially, but were later transfered to schools like Isabatudeen and Ansarudeen," she added.

BKayy:
Anybody that persistently refuses to remove her Hijab or Muslim dressing in a place that is not for Muslims is not different from Boko Haram and other Islamists because the same Muslims cannot tolerate other cultures like LGBT, Strip clubbing or hot dresses in their own community.
Madam you are just a terrorist.

Mikehot:
she is in the south yet asking why she is different

Finnese001:
That same treatment await any useless Igbo Muslim

kestolove95:
Those party goers to clap nd dance every Sunday really want people to be dressing half naked like them..

BKayy:
Anybody that persistently refuses to remove her Hijab or Muslim dressing in a place that is not for Muslims is not different from Boko Haram and other Islamists because the same Muslims cannot tolerate other cultures like LGBT, Strip clubbing or hot dresses in their own community.
Madam you are just a terrorist.

aribisala0:
Which place is "NOT FOR MUSIMS"

BKayy:

Any place that doesn't recognise Sharia

aribisala0:
So Lagos State is not for Muslims?

BKayy:

Discuss that one with Afonjas.
But if I am to speak on my own accord, I'll say that Lagos is "No man's land" or "home for all"
Nobody get am

aribisala0:
You are changing the Subject

Answer the question.


According to your statement there are places that are "NOT FOR MUSLIMS" so surely you must see the contradiction in declaring a place as "HOME FOR ALL"

You declared
if a place does not recognize Sharia it is not for Muslims so

Is Lagos for Muslims ?

BKayy:

Haven't you heard of the word "Neutral" before?
It exists when a place doesn't stand for any side.
Lagos is a No man's land and at such does not sway to any culture, politics, dimension or religion.
Thank you

aribisala0:


You chose your words did I choos e them for you?

You said a place that does not recognize sharia is NOT FOR MUSLIMS

Now you are talking of NEUTRAL


So are higher institutions in NIGERIA
NEUTRALS SPACES or

NOT FOR MUSLIMS spaces?

kestolove95:
Those party goers to clap nd dance every Sunday really want people to be dressing half naked like them..

butterfly777:
I am a Christian, and I believe in religious tolerance and respecting people's religion. But the average Nigerian is yet to know that it is wrong to impose their religions on people in secular settings.

Rather, they wrongly see every general gathering as an opportunity to make other people practice their own religion, claiming it is an opportunity to "win souls".

I believe God does not want us to force people to pray to him. We keep saying opening and closing prayers in public meetings, and also on school assembly grounds, thereby imposing religion on people who may not subscribe to it.

What do you want traditional religion practitioners, Jehovah's witnesses and even atheists to say? But we think it is justifiable to impose opening prayers on people because we think it is an opportunity to lead them into our religion.

So, untill we stop this practice of saying opening and closing prayer in multi-religious settings, Nigerians may not fully be conscious of respecting other religions, and this kind of discrimination may not stop.

Mikehot:
you made no sense

The Christian way of winning souls with dialogue, engagement and love versus the Islam jihad terrorists way of winning souls which do you prefer

So far nobody is killing you it's all good after all Na mouth dem take talk

butterfly777:


No sense? Think again.

I am talking about respect. Two wrongs don't make a right.

We all know that Islam has much more tendency to bully others and force their religion on others, but Christian should not use the social situations to make others engage in christian stuff. It is also wrong, though much much less so when compared to what Muslims might do.

Again, two wrongs still doesn't make a right.