The family of late Habeeb Idris who allegedly died during agitation for wearing of Hijab by Muslim female students at Oyun Baptist High School Ijagbo in Oyun Local Government Area of Kwara State has rejected the N1million compensation from the State Government.
The family of Habeeb said in Ilorin at a press conference that the state government had offered a sum of N1million and another N250,000 for the 10 wounded Muslims.
The Kwara State Commissioner for Communication, Mr Olabode Towoju, however, denied the allegation describing it as a figment of imagination of the accusers.
Towoju, who said that he was in a meeting last night, however, promised to give a statement on the alleged offer of the money today (Tuesday)
Addressing a press conference in Ilorin, the Kwara state capital, the Chairman of the Kwara Muslim Youths, Abdulrazaq Al-Amin, requested reasonable and fair monetary compensation for the deceased and the 10 fatally injured Muslims during the Ijagbo Hijab crisis.
He disclosed that the government was supposed to pay one hundred and thirteen million, three hundred and eighty-eight thousand naira (N113,388,000) as blood money for the family of the slain Habeeb Idris.
The group is also asking for the prosecution of those responsible for the killing of one Habeeb Idris and maiming of 10 others during the Hijab protest at Oyun Baptist High School, Ijagbo.
In another development, the Kwara Muslim Stakeholders have advised the state government not to deny Muslim female students their fundamental human rights by not allowing them to wear Hijab as part of their uniform in public schools in the state.
The group in a statement by its Chairman, Alhaji Is-haq Abdulkarim, in Ilorin on Monday said that the government should be proactive in its decision on the Muslim female students uniform.
Abdulkarim who alleged that the group was aware that people were mounting pressure on the government said it should ignore an advise to emulate how government of a neighbouring state handle the issue of Hijab in its public schools warning that doing so would be counter-productive.
He explained that “hijab is no longer a contentious issue as several superior Courts of record have ruled in its favour in Kwara, Osun and Lagos States – to mention a few; warning that Kwara State Government must enforce its lawful order of optional wearing hijab in all public schools as contained in its Circular issued since March last year.
He said, “it was unfortunate that the State Government allowed some criminals to take over a public school for three weeks where female Muslim students were denied access to their school and the school was not shut until life was lost and people were maimed.”
He called for compensation for the life of 25-year-old Habib Idris who was killed and immediate compensation as well for those wounded and are being treated in various Hospitals in Offa and Oyun local government council areas.