By Abimbola Ogunnaike
An Oyo State High Court presided over by Justice Moshood Ishola sitting in Ibadan, the state capital, has granted a female Muslim student at the University of Ibadan International School, Ibadan (ISI) the right to wear hijab on top of their school uniforms, reports thegazellenews.com
Justice Ishola gave the judgment on Wednesday, 22 May, 2024.
The secondary school is owned and controlled by the University of Ibadan, one of the public universities in the country.
Recall that the controversy over the usage of hijab by female Muslim students of the University of Ibadan International School, Ibadan, started in November 2018 when the secondary school denied some female Muslim students the right to use hijab on top of their uniforms.
The female Muslim students and their parents dragged the school, the University of Ibadan, and some principal officers of the institution to court.
The students included Faridah Akerele, Aaliyah Dopesi, Akhifah Dokpesi, Raheemah Akinlusi, Imam Akinoso, Hamdallah Olosunde, Aliyyah Adebayo, Moriddiyah Yekinni, Ikhlas Badiru, Mahmuda Babarinde, and Fareedah Moshood.
The judge, in his judgment, said he based his judgment on previous court judgments at the Supreme Court.
The judge,who held that the school, as a public institution, should allow female Muslim students the right to wear hijab, added that the school does not have the right to deny the students their fundamental human rights.
Ishola said he based all his verdict on the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and other charters, which grant freedom of religion and association.
“The school, staff, or its agents have no right to punish students for using hijab on the school premises or outside the school premises.
“Fundamental human rights are inalienable rights and cannot be taken, even by the powerful government. The school is a public institution,” he said.
