OAU Shuts Down Mosques Inside Hostel Over Alleged Prostitution & Alien Doctrine Teaching

The Divisional Students Affairs of the Obafemi
Awolowo University management has stated
that it is ready to shut down mosques across
the all hostels in the institution.
According to a statement signed by the Dean
of the Divisional Students Affairs DSA, Dr. G. O
Akinola, the justification for shutting down the
mosque is not far from ranging allegations
levied on the MSSN splinter group.
The splinter group was alleged of harbouring
female students for prostitution and teaching
of an alien doctrine.
Read the statement below:
“The Division of Students Affairs (DSA)
acting upon the Statutes and Regulations of
Obafemi Awolowo University hereby declares
closed until further notice, the two purported
mosques in Awolowo and Fajuyi Halls for the
reasons of peace, free movement of students
and staff within the Halls and the overriding
need for the security of all persons, assets
and installation in the Halls.
The reasons for this closure are as set out
below:
1. On Friday 12th August, 2016 when the
current executive members of the Muslim
Students Society of Nigeria (MSSN), Obafemi
Awolowo University (OAU), Ife B.ranch were
to be inaugurated at the Central Mosque, the
Division of Students Affairs (DSA) was
invited and was duly represented by the Vice
Dean of the Division. There were issues at
the inauguration when we were told of
another group of Muslim students who
wanted to impose themselves and their
doctrines which are not consistent with the
Constitution of the MSSN members. At that
point the Vice-Dean was asked to interact
with this group with a view to finding out
what their arguments and positions were;
2. After the Vice-Dean’s interaction with the
group (which is yet to give a name to itself,
although they insisted that they should be
called MSSN too), we decided to call
members of the group to a meeting at the
DSA.
They came on Tuesday, 23rd August 2016 at
6.15pm. After several attempts at making
them attend the parley failed, we eventually
held a meeting with them on this 23rd
August. We stressed at the meeting the
point that the DSA is only aware of the
existence of only one MSSN as a registered
Muslim students’ group on the campus of
the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife.
We impressed it on the group that even the
DSA is also aware that the National body of
the MSSN recognises only one MSSN group
here on campus. We therefore advised the
group to, if they have any issue of
disagreement between them and the
mainstream MSSN, please for sake of peace
on campus and interest of their members
take steps to sort them out with the
Executive of the MSSN on campus.
3. The meeting deliberated extensively on
how to bring this settlement about and at
the end of it, it was agreed that a period of
one (1) week be given to permit the group
interact with the mainstream MSSN and
settle their disagreement amicably failing
which the two ‘mosques’ at Fajuyi and
Awolowo Halls would be closed down for
peace to reign.
Note that this splinter group of the MSSN
had begun to use the two ‘mosques’ in these
Halls as a base for their anti-mainstream
MSSN rhetorics and doctrinal disagreement
on campus, including recruitment of students
for their separate teachings. Note also, that
these two ‘mosques’, converted as such
were originally Cafeteria buildings meant for
the respective halls under the University’s
master plan.
We also agreed at the meeting that if the
DSA found that they were able to make
progress on the reconciliation, even if they
have not completely reached an agreement
on doctrinal or worship issues, the
suggestive closure of the ‘mosque’ would be
suspended to permit for more room for
rapport and deeper reconciliation. We agreed
that we were going to meet again on the
very day that the one-week ultimatum to
reconcile expired, that is Tuesday 30th
August, 2016. Meanwhile, desirous of a way
to convince the DSA that the splinter group
meant well, they invited the DSA to visit the
two ‘mosques’ in Fajuyi and Awolowo Halls
to see that there was nothing sinister in the
activities of the splinter group and that if
anything at all, they have been peaceful and
law-abiding.
4. However, on Thursday 25th August, a
meeting was held with the University
recognized MSSN Executive members. This
same MSSN Executive is also recognised by
the OAU Muslim Community and by the
National body of MSSN in Nigeria. That
meeting was called to hear the complaints
of the splinter MSSN members and their
grievances. The recognized MSSN was
informed of the University’s plan to close the
‘mosques’ in Fajuyi and Awolowo Halls if the
splinter group of the MSSN failed to make
peace with the mainstream MSSN and
reconcile accordingly;
5. On Friday 26th August, the MSSN
National body paid a courtesy visit to the
DSA to discuss the furore over the
recognized MSSN on campus. The visitation
team led by the President of the National
MSSN, Muhammad Jameel Muhammad
came in company of the campus mainstream
MSSN and some of his officials. The thrust
of their visit was to make a passionate
appeal to the DSA on their fear for the
possibility of “emergence on the OAU
campus of an extremist group of Muslim
students in a fashion similar to the current
Boko Haram insurgency besetting Nigeria”.
They expressed some fears and strongly felt
that the splinter MSSN group in OAU and
what they referred to as “their strange
doctrinal principles and procedures” could
lead to the materialization of such fears.
The visitation team pleaded with the
University through the DSA to do all that
was lawful and needful to see that such
fears were allayed. The visitation team also
reiterated their support for the recognized
MSSN mainstream organization and its
president. In addition, the team gave a copy
of the MSSN Constitution and 5 copies of
the articles of faith of the MSSN titled
“MSSN at a Glance” to the DSA;
6. On the night of 27th August, 2016 reports
came to the Acting Dean, DSA, that the
splinter MSSN group were planning to hold a
religious programme in Awolowo Hall
Cafeteria the following day (i.e. 28th August,
2016), for which they had not sought or
obtained permission. The Acting Dean
reported to the University Chief Security
Officer who immediately sent a group of his
men to see how things would go with a view
to apprehending any illegality or untoward
behaviours and report forthwith. Report
came that the religious programme held and
that the leaders of the splinter MSSN
presided at that programme. The point here
is that the group failed to seek or secure
approval for this religious activity in the
Cafeteria.
7. However, on the night preceding the
expiration of the ultimatum given to the
Splinter MSSN group, to make peace with
the mainstream MSSN and reconcile
accordingly, a text message was sent to the
Vice Dean, DSA, from the Splinter MSSN
group that they had contacted someone who
would help broker the reconciliation talks
and that the person said he would see the
Chief Imam of the Central mosque later. The
DSA quickly apprehended this as delay
tactics as the text could have been sent
earlier. Otherwise, why the night preceding
the expiration of the ultimatum to reconcile?
In any case, on the agreed date when the
ultimatum expired (Tuesday 30th August,
2016), the DSA expected them to come for a
meeting at the DSA’s office, but to our
chagrin they refused to show up.
8. Meanwhile, acting upon the invitation
earlier extended to the DSA by this splinter
MSSN group, the Acting Dean and Vice Dean
at about 10.45am on 31st August, 2016,
visited the Fajuyi and Awolowo Halls with a
view to seeing for themselves samples of the
activities of the splinter MSSN group. We
told them of many irregular and outright
illegal things we have heard them do at the
‘mosques’. We made them realise that they
had been holding unauthorized religious
programmes in these ‘mosques’ and several
other places on campus without approval
from the DSA. They, however, argued that
they had not been violent but law abiding
and that they had never done anything illegal
or irregular in any of their religious meetings.
9. But on this our visit to Awolowo
‘mosque’, we discovered a door leading to
one of the rooms in the ‘mosque’ was
securely locked from inside and the
occuP@nts refused to open. We threatened
to force the door open if they refused any
further, and after much persuasion, the door
was opened and we discovered to our utter
amazement that a group of girls numbering
about a dozen were locked inside the room
either fully or partially veiled. Our
amazement was that the room in which they
were locked or locked themselves was in a
male hall, we wondered to no end why
purported female students would be locked
up in a male hall during lecture hours, no
matter the excuse. Before we could
interrogate them, some escaped through the
backdoor of the room but we were able to
apprehend three of them from whom we
collected their identity cards.
10. At the Fajuyi Hall, we also discovered to
utter shock that a group of girls who
purported themselves to be students were
locked in a room in the ‘mosque’. We
interrogated them and they claimed that
they were kept there by their leaders who
happen to be the leaders of MSSN splinter
group. They, in addition claimed that they
were praying in the room. Our dilemma was
why a group of female students would claim
to be praying during lecture hours in an
exclusive male hall at around 11am! There
was five girls in this room and we collected
the identity cards from four of them. The
fifth one who was fully veiled said she had
not her identity card on her. However, a
male student who vouched for this fully
veiled girl volunteered to stand in for her
until she produced her identity card. We
collected this male student’s identity card.
11. Having observed the seeming obstinacy
of the splinter MSSN group to interact with
the DSA and to fulfill the requirements of the
agreement reached on 23rd August, we again
were forced to send a follow-up invitation to
them stating that they should come to the
DSA for a meeting on Wednesday, 31st
August for a serious interaction at the DSA’s
office. But to our utter dismay they sent a
text message to the DSA that all of them in
the group would be having Continuous
Assessment tests from 10am to 5pm on
31st August, 2016. We replied that text
message that no test of any kind could
possibly last from 10am to 5pm in this
University and that in their own interest they
needed to show up for the meeting on or
before 2.00pm on 31st August to discuss the
issue of reconciliation as agreed in our last
meeting with them.
12. The splinter MSSN group eventually
came in the afternoon of 31st August at
about 1.15pm. We intimated them with our
findings and told them they had to put a
stop to their practice of harbouring girls in
rooms within the ‘mosques’. Their leaders
insisted that they could not abide by that
demand and that they reserved the right to
keep any of their female members in the
rooms in the ‘mosque’! We explained to
them that what they were doing was
contrary to the laws of the University and
the regulations guiding religious worship and
students’ conduct. But they held their
ground that since the ‘mosque’ was a place
of worship they could not abide by the rules
and the need to desist from keeping female
students within its rooms at any time. The
meeting ended in a stalemate.
13. We thereafter pleaded with the Chief
Imam of the University to take full charge of
the ‘mosques’ and prevent forthwith any
breach of the University’s rules within its
walls. He declined flatly and said he would
rather not be held responsible for what ever
happened in those ‘mosques’ as he had
since dissociated himself from the practices
and doctrines of the splinter MSSN who
controlled it.
14. It should be noted that the Federal
Government, of Nigeria of which Obafemi
Awolowo University is an integral part, has
not legalized prostitution in Universities. It is
pertinent to note also that no female should
be camped in a male facility under the guise
of religion, as this is tantamount to running
a brothel which will breed prostitution; and
this is illegal. It is only fit, proper and
responsible that any grossly abused
university facility be closed down.
15. Consequently, acting within its powers to
prevent any breakdown of law and order and
to ensure freedom of movement of persons
within the respective halls of residence,
especially at this time of dire security
concern in the country, the DSA has
therefore acted this 2nd day of September,
2016 to seal off and close down henceforth,
the two ‘mosques’ in Awolowo and Fajuyi
Halls until such a time that orderliness and
the rule of the University would be respected
within its walls.
Signed: Dr. (Mrs.) G. O. Akinola
(Acting Dean, Division of Students’ Affairs)
Stamped!!!