WHAT I am suggesting today is unlikely to be popular
especially among our Moslem brothers. But whether it is popular or not, it is
imperative especially in view of the bloodletting in the country through
activities of hijab/ burka-wearing suicide bombers. There have been a whole lot
of debate on whether the government should ban the wearing of this attire by
female muslims. our muslim brother especially from the northern part of the
country have shown their opposition to this. They argue that it would be
erroneous to say all hijab/burka- wearing person is a suicide bomber, apart
from the fact that wearing Hijab has religious and cultural undertones.
The President of the Nigeria Bar Association
(NBA), Okey Wali is one of those opposed to the ban, “wearing of Hijab by the
female Muslim faithful has religious as well as cultural meaning, and nobody
can take away that right from them.
“The security agencies should find lasting
solutions to the country’s security challenges rather than place a ban on
wearing of Hijab as that is an easy way out,” he said.
Also, leader of the Northern Civil Society
Coalition and Senator representing Kaduna Central Senatorial zone, Senator
Shehu Sani in an interview was asked this same question on whether there should
be a ban on hijab. His response: “It is not possible to ban hijab which is the
muslim religion’s attire in Nigeria. Because one girl simply laced herself with
bombs and detonated it in the public does not mean every girl wearing hijab is
also a terrorist. Terrorists do not need hijab to cover a suicide belt or bomb.
He or she can even wear suit”. While I agree with the NBA president and Senator
Sani that it would be unfair to profile any Muslim girl wearing hijab as a
suicide bomber, it has been established that the suicide bombers hide
explosives under this voluminous attire. The suicide bombers have not been
found to be wearing suit, neither have they been discovered by security
agencies, to be wearing babariga or agbada. It is thus imperative that having
established this fact, the reasonable thing to do is take measure to curb this.
As much as one respects the Muslim religion, one should balance this with the
need to save lives.
The question we should ask is whether it
would make more sense to ban hijab/burka and fore- stall its use to terminate
lives and hurt the feelings of a few opposed to its ban or allow Boko Haram to
continue with their deadly act, hiding under the guise of piety and religious
sentiment which hijab/burka seems to confer. The NBA president equally said
that our security agencies should find a lasting solution to the security
lapses leading to suicide bombing, the question is; is banning of Hijab not one
of the solutions to the security challenges?
Solutions cannot be manufactured, they had to
come from our collective experience and the exigencies of the time. What has
been discovered, based on experience is that the suicide-bombers hide their
belt of explosives under their robe, it is based on this that a solution must
be fashioned. That is just our current reality, it is not about sentiment.
Last year, Nigeria experienced so many of
such suicide bombing by hijab/burka- wearing bombers. This has continued till
date with people believing that some of these female bombers are some of the
Chibok girls taken away over a year ago and who have now been brainwashed by
the deadly sect to carry out the act.
In February, two hijab-wearing women said to
be in their late 20s in Yobe State killed two people when they detonated
explosive devices hidden beneath their clothings.On February 11, in Borno
State, another female suicide bomber in a burka attacked a crowded market,
killing seven people and seriously injuring 20 others.
Prior to the February suicide bombing, a girl
believed to be no more than 10 years old detonated explosives hidden under her
burka at a crowded Maiduguri Monday market, killing 20 people and wounding many
more. Also in May, a 10 year-old girl detonated a bomb concealed under her
hijab, killing five and injuring many others at Bayan Tasha motor park in
Damaturu, Yobe State.
Also on Wednesday, two female suicide bombers
wearing the hijab also detonated their bombs leading to the death of nearly 20
people while several others were injured in a Kano GSM market.
So why has it become difficult for our
government to take a stand on this matter and ban the wearing of this attire in
public places? Are we saying the sentiment attached to the wearing of hijab is
more important than the lives of many Nigerians being wasted by
hijab/burka-wearing suicide bombers?
Indeed, banning hijab would not be a first in
the Moslem world countries especially in Africa. Countries with similar suicide
bombing experience by hijab/ burka- wearing suicide attackers such as Cameroun,
Chad, Egypt, Congo and more recently, Senegal have all banned the use of hijab
in public places. So why is it difficult for Nigeria to take this bold step?
It does not mean one is against the Islamic
religion or one does not respect the sentiment attached to wearing the outfit,
it could be a temporary measure until the security situation improves as a
lecturer in one of the nation’s higher institutions, Emmanuel Akubor puts it,
“People should not see a ban on the Hijab as showing hatred for the religion,
but because some persons have resolved to use the clothing to harm and
terrorise others”. Banning of hijab should be seen as a security measure and it
should not in any way be politicized as we are wont to do with such important
matters in the country.