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By Lukman Olabiyi, Oluseye Ojo, Timothy Olanrewaju,; Femi Folaranmi, Rose Ejembi, Sola Ojo, Priscilla Ediare, Obinna Odogwu, John Adams, Chijioke Agwu; Noah Ebije, Tony John
The recent approval of the use of Hijab by Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Usman Alkali Baba, for willing Muslim police officers in the country has continued to generate mixed reactions.
According to the police, the new dress code allows female officers to wear stud earrings under their berets or peak caps while in uniform.
Olumuyiwa Adejobi, Police spokesman, who issued a public statement on the matter, stated that the new dress code, which is optional, was unveiled at a meeting involving the IGP and “strategic police managers.” But critics of the new policy, including retired police officers, politicians, lawyers and human rights activists, fear that the approval which they said is against the constitution will not only further polarise the country along religious fault lines but also endanger the lives of the female policewomen in a country battling with insecurity. But supporters of the new development argue that it is not only in line with international best practices but is also meant to protect the fundamental human rights of those affected.
Not a good development, portends danger to officers –Critics
A legal practitioner, Mr David Owoeye, described the approval as against Section 10 of the 1999 constitution that condemns the state’s adoption of any religion. “When you have a situation where you have people clamouring for the use of a dress that is normally associated with a particular religion, then it is a flagrant abuse of that section,” he said.
Chief Ade Ajakaiye, a retired Assistant Inspector-General of Police criticised the IGP for not consulting widely before pushing out the statement.
“Religion is a very serious issue in Nigeria,” Ajekaiye said. “When you are introducing Hijab into the police, other organisations will follow suit. If I were the IGP, I wouldn’t have done it now. And if I would do it, I would have consulted with many Nigerian people to hear their opinions.” Chief Nengi James, Chairman of Civil Liberty Organisation (CLO), Bayelsa State noted that the Inspector-General of Police was not appointed to make a policy on Hijab and uniform but to fight crime.
Aisha Abdul Muhammed, chairperson, Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA), Kaduna State branch, feared that such approval, if put into practice, may expose the wearers to grave danger. “The moment you see her with it, you will know this one is coming from a particular religion, which is not supposed to be. She may be endangered in such a situation and may be open to attacks even outside her official duty as a security agent.”
Jonathan Asake, President, Southern Kaduna People’s Union (SOKAPU), warned like Abdul-Muhammed did, that it could make the female police officers easy target of attacks. He said: “If you see a policewoman in hijab you will now know that she is a Muslim. But if she is not in Hijab, you can say that this is a Christian woman or non- Muslim woman. That way, the uniform can make some people targets for elimination.”
Rotimi Adabembe, an Ekiti-based lawyer warned that the move would further deepen the division in the country. Olumide Ogele, the Director-General, Human Rights Defenders and Protectors Association of Nigeria, queried what the reaction of the IGP will be if other religions begin to agitate for the recognition of their dress codes by police authorities.
A retired policeman who didn’t want his name mentioned opined that the police force as an organisation should not have anything to do with religion and warned that such approval would polarise the institution. “If you have a female Muslim police officer dealing with a Christian, at a glance, this person would have known that the officer is a Muslim,” he explained. “Also, the Muslims will see it as an advantage because whenever they see an officer in hijab they will say ‘this is our own.’ I worked in the North and know how the people there think and behave. If you speak Hausa and you are a Muslim police officer, they treat you differently. So, I believe that this new development will further deepen such attitude and divide the force and Nigeria as a whole.”
Dede Uzor, Executive Director of Human Rights, Liberty Access, and Peace Defenders Foundation (HURIDE), believes that introducing religion into the Nigerian Police by way of dress code will bring about division and sectionalism. Tony-Uche Ezekwelu, former Deputy Chief Whip of the Anambra State House of Assembly, who described the approval as “illegal and uncalled for,” also agreed that the approval will divide the country along religious lines.
John Vatsa, former Commissioner for Information and Culture, and chieftain of All Progressives Congress (APC) in Niger State said what what the police needs in the 21st century is not Hijab but the training of its personnel and equipment to enable it fight crime.
Dave Ajetomobi, former Chairman, Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Ikeja Branch, accused the Federal Government of using religion to create a diversion from “pressing and burning national issues.” Chief Iorbee Ihagh, President-General, Mzough-U-Tiv Worldwide and a retired Comptroller of Prisons, noted that the Nigerian Police Force is a secular police force that should not be associated with any tribe, religion or political party. He said anyone who wishes to introduce these to the Force should rather go and set up his own security force. Wondering why there was no public hearing on the matter, Ms Josephine Habba, National Coordinator of Jireh Doo Foundation, insisted that there is a hidden agenda to it.
Emmanuel Nwabrije, a former governorship candidate in Rivers State opined that if it is not stopped, “very soon, it will creep into the Nigerian Army, Air Force, Navy and other federal government agencies.” Livingstone Wechie, popular social crusader and public analyst based in Port Harcourt, tagged it a fragrant violation of the 1999 constitution that “identifies Nigeria as a secular state because of her multi-religious makeup.”
Angus Chukwuka, President of Admiralty Lawyers Association of Nigeria and former Publicity Secretary of the Nigeria Bar Association (NBA), Rivers State branch, warned of possible dangers: suspicion, disunity and divisiveness among the ranks and files of the force, and tension and acrimony among the citizens.
Chief Chris Usulor, member of the Ebonyi State House of Assembly, called on the federal government to de-emphasise religion and ethnicity in setting a template for public servants in the country. Usulor, a one-time governorship aspirant in the state and now a lawmaker representing Ezza South Constituency in the House, said he does not see anything wrong in the approval “provided it will not affect their duties and provided also that the same privilege will be accorded Christian officers too.” Mr Harrison Eze, a human right activist and member of the Human Rights Defenders of Nigeria, described the approval as unnecessary, adding that it could lead to chaos and confusion.
Development in order, in line with international practice
–Supporters
But making a case on the need to tolerate or accommodate other people’s beliefs, Kaduna-based Islamic cleric, Sheikh Ahmed Gumi, saw nothing wrong in the approval of the dress code by the Inspector General: “It is becoming an international norm to allow Muslim women to wear their hijab,” he said.
Ebikebuna Augustine Aluzu, social critic and human rights activist, described the criticisms as a storm in a teacup adding that the IGP has not done anything illegal. Akeem Olatunji, Publicity Secretary, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Oyo State, also saw nothing wrong in the approval “as long as it does not hinder their (female officers’) performance.”
Abdur-Rahman Balogun, chairman, Muslim Parents Forum, International School, Ibadan praised the Inspector General for approving the dress code for women in police, adding that uniforms should not be used to exclude adherents of the Islamic faith from “aspiring to quality education or any legitimate employment opportunities.” Balogun who is also the Chairman, Coalition of Muslim Groups for Hijab Rights noted that “this gesture, like earlier ones by different Schools of Nursing in different parts of Nigeria as well as Nigerian Air Force schools, has put paid to the feeble and infantile argument in some quarters that the Hijab and official uniforms are mutually exclusive.”
Prof Lanre Badmus of Hijrah Council of Nigeria called on Muslim policewomen across the country not to feel intimidated in putting on the hijab. Prof. Ahmad Galadima, Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC), Zamfara State Chapter, described it as a landmark development in the history of the struggle for Muslim civil rights, adding that female Muslims in police formations (including the army) in Britain, the United States, Canada, etc. use hijab with their uniforms.
Hajia Rafi’ah Idowu Sanni, National Amirah, the Federation of Muslim Women’s Associations in Nigeria (FOMWAN) said that the newly approved dress code for policewomen will enhance commitment to duty among female officers. Kabiru Akingbolu, rights activist and legal practitioner, said he supports the new policy, adding that such dress code is permissible in many other countries. Dr Amina Abana, a gender equality advocate and Mass Communication teacher at the University of Maiduguri, sees the approval as constituting some respect “for the right of women in the Nigerian Police.”
Comrade Abdullahi Jabi, the Secretary-General, Campaign for Democracy (CD), Minna, Niger State, described the approval as a welcome development which will douse tension which has been on for a long time particularly in the South West, adding, “Muslims from that part of Nigeria have been agitating for this for over a decade now.”
Anthony Sani, former Secretary General, Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF), was noncommittal in his response. “I am not a security expert,” he said. “So I do not know how the wearing of hijab by female police officers would improve or diminish the effectiveness of operations of the police officers. So, if its wearing would improve the quality and volume of services of the police for the good of humanity, so be it. But if such wearing would act as a drag to the services provided by such female police officers, then there is no need for the wear.”
