The Quranic Reciters Association of Nigeria has vehemently rejected the abolishment of the Almajiri education system in Kano State.
This is even as the government through its Commissioner for Education Muhammad Sanusi Kiru, said that only a minority of the Qur’anic Reciters are descenting on the government policy.
Governor Abdullahi Ganduje recently announced the abolishment of the Almajiri education system as part of his free and compulsory education policy.
The governor subsequently ordered that the Almajiri pupils be evacuated to their respective families and ordered only those from Kano be enrolled in the remodel education system in the state.
However, speaking at a press conference in Kano on Sunday, the National President of the association, Gwani Lawi-Danzarga said they are not in support of the decision to ban the Almajiri system in Kano.
According to him, the Ganduje’s administration had arbitrarily abolished the education system without consulting them, describing the decision as a violation of the right of movement and settlement as provided by the Nigerian Constitution.
He maintained that instead of banning Almajiri education in Kano, the state government ought to have formalized the system to make it like that of western education.
“Everybody is a witness to how western education has gotten total attention. Why not Quranic education? It should have the same preferences as that of western education. But, we just woke up to hear that the state government had banned Almajiri education.
“We are Nigerians. The Nigerian Constitution has provided for free movement and that a citizen can live anywhere in this country, but now our pupils are being arrested by the government.
“All this while, the government has taken a decision without consulting us. Although, we can not fight the government but we are not happy with the decision and it is hereby rejected” he said.
Mr Lawi-Danzarga also lamented that most of the Almajiri schools in the state had been deserted as the government had arrested a majority of the pupils, adding that he could not give the exact number of the arrested boys but the association is collating the figures.
The President disclosed that the officials of the association are making consultations to take the next line of action.
The Education Commissioner insisted that more than 86 percent of the Qur’anic Reciters and Allaramas are supporting government policies on the Almajiris system.
