A viral video showing teachers of Musbaudeen Islamiya Arabic school in Ganmo, Ifelodun local government area of Kwara state brutalizing both females and males Islamic student of the school has generated nationwide criticism.
In the video, five Islamic clerics could be seen brutally flogging the students on their backs for allegedly celebrating a birthday party in a clubhouse and taking alcohol. The flogging left graphic cane marks on the bodies of the students.
Reacting to the video, the Kwara State Government has suspended the head of the school in a statement issued on Sunday, October 10, by the Commissioner for Education and Human Capital Development, Hajia Sa’adatu Modibbo Kawu.
According to the statement, a government delegation visited the Arabic school and has taken the affected students to a public hospital for proper medical examination and treatment. It further states that the punishment was meted according to the directives of the head of the school who has since been suspended, and the consent of the parents.
The statement adds that the government has directed the setting up of an investigative committee, comprising Muslim scholars, leaders and government officials, to look into the issue.