- The Government of Kwara State and the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) are pushing conflicting ideas on how morning devotions should be conducted in public schools in the state.
While government wants pupils to pray silently, CAN wants morning devotion to be conducted according to school proprietors’ faith.
The Government of Kwara State and the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) are pushing conflicting ideas on how morning devotions should be conducted in public schools in the state.
While the government wants pupils to say their prayers silently, CAN believes morning prayers to be conducted in accordance to the faith of the proprietors of each primary and secondary school.
While reacting to a directive by the Secretary of Ilorin West Local Government Area that schools should hold separate devotion for both Muslim and Christian students, the state government according to Punch directed that students in public schools should be made to pray silently during their morning devotion.
In a statement by the state’s Commissioner for Education and Human Capital Development, Mrs Bisola Ahmed on Monday, January 12, 2020, the government condemned religious organisations that go to public schools to preach during morning assembly.
The statement reads, “It has come to the notice of the Kwara State Government that some religious organisations have been going to public schools in the state to preach during the morning assembly.
“The ministry wants to say categorically that no religious organisation is permitted to go to public schools for preaching or engaging in any religious activities during morning assembly.
“The ministry, therefore, directs that prayers should be said silently on the morning assembly across public schools in the state.
“The government appeals to all school heads and other stakeholders to adhere strictly to this directive, which is to maintain peace and decorum in our schools. All principals, head teachers and education secretaries should please take note.”
But CAN disagreed with the commissioner, saying her statement contradicted the status quo on morning devotion in public schools.
In a statement jointly signed by Most Rev. Paul Olawoore and Rev. Idowu Ibitoye, Chairman and Secretary respectively, the religious body said, there was an agreement between the state government and CAN that morning devotion should be held according to the faith of school proprietors.
CAN says, “The attention of the Christian Association of Nigeria, Kwara State chapter, has been drawn to an online publication titled ‘Kwara Government bans preaching in public schools’ in response to the purported press statement by the state government dated January 14, 2020, banning religious activities in public schools.
“The Christian Association of Nigeria, Kwara State chapter, debunked the press release. We make bold to say that the press statement was never authorised by the Kwara State in the way it was reported.
“The statement explained that both the government and stakeholders of schools in the state had earlier agreed that morning devotion should be held according to the faith of the proprietors of each school in the state.
CAN argued that the state government had earlier decided that status quo be maintained following a directive after the Secretary of Education, Ilorin West LGA issued directives to schools to start observing two separate assemblies for Muslim and Christian pupils.
