Kwara State Government has approved the reopening of Oyun Baptist High School, Ijagbo.
TheNewsGuru.com recalls that academic activities were halted in the institution 119 days ago over the crisis caused by the wearing of Hijab.
The crisis was between Muslim and Christian parents who besieged the school to defend their respective faith on the wearing of Hijab by female Muslim students in the school.
ALSO READ:Many injured as protest breaks out over use of Hijab in Kwara school
One person was reportedly feared killed while 11 others were injured during the crisis.
No fewer than 150 final year students of the Senior secondary school who were expected to sit for their West Africa School Certificate Examinations (WASC) have been the Casualties of the closure.
Kwara State Ministry of Education and Human Capital Development however released a statement on Wednesday announcing reopening of the school.
The statement which was signed by the Permanent Secretary, Mrs Mary Adeosun, said the decision to reopen the school is one of the government’s multi-prong approaches to return normalcy to the school.
It reads in part, “Consequently, all teachers and students are directed to return to their classrooms while the government white paper committee continues the efforts to address pending issues related to the recent disturbance in the public school.
“Similarly, the Ministry restates the government’s position that any Muslim schoolgirl who desires to wear the hijab is allowed to do so in all public schools, including in Oyun Baptist High School Ijagbo, which is owned by the State Government and run with public resources,”
The government advised all stakeholders in the area to give peace a chance and to respect the law, warning that “the government will not hesitate to shut the school again, among other things, if anything threatens the safety of the little children.”
According to the statement, the ministry welcomes all the students back to school and urged them to maximise their time in the classrooms, while relevant authorities are also urged to help them to fill any gaps on whatever they might have missed during the closure of the school.