Leadnaija
Former presidential candidate Omoyele Sowore has described some of Nigeria’s leaders as “idiots” following the closure of schools in four northern states due to the ongoing Ramadan fast.
In a viral video, Sowore criticized the decision to close schools for five weeks, stressing that no one has the right to close a learning center that transmits knowledge to young Nigerians.
According to him, Saudi Arabia, where everyone, including Nigerians, goes regularly, does not close schools as is the case currently in these states.
As President, he said religion would be extricated from the state while stressing that such a policy would not be tolerated should he steer the affairs of the state.
He said: “Saudi Arabia, where everybody is headed to for lesser hajj, did they close down their schools? Your leaders are ignoramuses. Basically, let me just put it straight, they are idiots.”
“When I become the president of Nigeria, the state will have no business with religion. So I can’t be president and come and close down schools because of fasting. No. It takes me back to the outrage that has become normalized. You’re right. Religion is sensitive. And by the way, I wish our Muslim brothers and sisters Ramadan Kareem, they are fasting.”
“But it is outrageous that anybody would close down schools where knowledge is supposed to be transmitted and transferred, including to Muslims. Because some of the schools that are going to be closed are also Quranic centers. So how do they learn the Quran if the schools are closed down because of fasting? It speaks to the depth of ignorance.”
Sowore joins a long list of critics of the new government policy. Recall that the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria criticized the decision, describing it as a violation of the country’s secular principles and a threat to education.Watch Video
In a statement signed by CBCN President Archbishop Lucius Ugorji and Secretary Bishop Donatus Ogun on Monday, the bishops expressed concern that the closures affect not only Muslim students but also Christian students and Christian-owned schools.
They argued that such a policy undermines the constitutional guarantee of religious neutrality and the fundamental right to education.
“The Nigerian state is secular, and this secularity is not a mere declaration; it is a fundamental principle that must guide all aspects of our national life,” the statement read, referencing Section 10 of the Constitution, which prohibits the government from adopting any religion as a state religion.
The CBCN also cited international human rights frameworks, such as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, which affirm education as a fundamental right.
