The Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) has lambasted legal practitioner, Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa over a comment attributed to the legal luminary declaring the new dress code for female police officers as illegal.
The Nigeria Police Force has announced that the Inspector General of Police, Usman Baba recently approved a new dress code for policewomen in Nigeria.
This announcement was made in a statement on Friday by the Acting Force Public Relations Officer, Olumuyiwa Adejobi.
The Police PRO announced that the “new and improved” dress code would now allow female police officers to wear stud earrings.
Adejobi said the female police officers would also be permitted to wear headscarves (hijab) under their berets or peak caps while in uniform.
Reacting in a statement on Saturday, Adegboruwa said the new dress code was illegal and should be reversed immediately as he advised the police to focus on its primary responsibility of combating crimes.
Adegboruwa argued that the religious preferences of police officers should be a private matter as he alleged that the current IGP was using the platform to enforce his religion on the Force.
But on Sunday, MURIC, in a statement by Ustadh Jibril Ayu-Akpanim, the Chairman, Akwa Ibom Chapter of the group, urged the police to ignore Adegboruwa's statement.
The group stated that despite the legal practitioner's human rights struggles, he has never shown support for the civil rights struggles of Nigerian Muslims, alleging that Adegboruwa is a Muslim-hater.
It further asked that Adegboruwa should be stripped of his SAN title, stating that he had shown opposition to justice for Muslims.
MURIC said, “How can a whole SAN oppose a matter of fundamental human rights? It is paradoxical that those who know the law are the ones who adopt prejudice against civil rights matters. Adegboruwa’s vituperation sprang from personal acrobatic religiosity. His articles and comments on the hijab crisis in Kwara and other places symptomize bias, intolerance and pathological hatred for Muslims.
“Is this the same senior lawyer who has been articulate on human rights in Nigeria all these years? We are appalled that he has elected selective justice. It means Adegboruwa’s definition of human rights is exclusive. Muslims must not enjoy human rights. Muslims have no place in his concept of equal rights, freedom and justice. Adegboruwa has exposed himself as a Muslim-hater nulli secundus.
“Adegboruwa should be stripped of his SAN title. A senior lawyer who ignored the tyranny of school principals and teachers who have been persecuting innocent school girls over an ordinary headscarf for decades but jumps up within 24 hours to oppose a window of liberty for them does not deserve the highest decoration in his profession.
“The SAN is asking how Catholics and Anglican women police should dress now that their Muslim colleagues have been allowed to use hijab. He should tell us how Catholic and Anglican policewomen dress in Britain, America, Canada, etc. By the way, is Adegoruwa telling us that he has never seen pictures of Mary the mother of Jesus (peace be upon him)? Has he ever seen Mary without a hijab on her head? Bigotry is indeed an almost incurable disease.
“Adegboruwa should ask Catholic and Anglican policewomen to demand their own form of dress code if such a thing exists in real life. He will be surprised to see that Nigerian Muslims will not oppose their demand. Islam condemns pettiness and selfishness. It teaches Muslims to live and let others live. Anyway, Adegboruwa may advise Catholic and Anglican policewomen to dress like Mary, the much-honoured mother of Jesus (peace be upon him).
“Adegboruwa should know that the current uniform of the police satisfies Nigerian Christians because it was designed ab initio by the British colonialists who, essentially, were Christians. That is why Nigerian Christians have never complained about uniforms in schools and in security agencies.
“Muslim interest was not taken into consideration by the colonialists when they were designing uniforms for schools and the security agencies. Justice and the need for inclusiveness demand that the design should be reviewed in the post-independence period. That is why even the recent approval must be seen as belated.
“Quarter-finally, has Adegboruwa forgotten the outcome of the hocus pocus created in Osun State when the court approved hijab and the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) incited Christian students to wear ridiculous garbs like church choir, Sango, Oya and masquerade dresses to school?
“How long did it last? He should go to the state today to see how the female Muslim students shine with their hijab. No matter how fast falsehood runs and for how long, truth will catch up with it in a single day.
“Semi-finally, we advise Adegboruwa to go to court if he feels so strongly that Muslim female policewomen have no right to use hijab. He may also want to go further by approaching the international court at the Hagues to stop British, American and Canadian police women and soldiers from using same. Islamophobia in the legal profession is not new to us."
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