Kaduna shuts two Islamic schools over sexual abuse of minors

The Kaduna State Government’s Schools Quality Assurance Authority (KSSQA) has shut down two Islamic Schools in the state over the alleged sexual abuse of minors.

One of the schools, Madrasatul Ulumul Deeniya wa Tahfizul Qur’an, located in the Rigasa area of the state, was closed over the alleged rape of a six-year-old girl in the school premises and the covering up of the incident by the school authority.

Explaining the reason for the closure of the schools, the overseer of the KSSQA, Idris Aliyu, said the six-year-old girl was violated within the school premises and the school authority covered it up and claimed ignorance of the incident.

The other Islamiyah School, located at Tsohon Masallacin Juma’a in Kachia, Kachia Local Government Area of Kaduna State, was reportedly shut down after a 50-year-old teacher at the school allegedly raped and impregnated a 12-year-old pupil.

Speaking on the case of the six-year-old who was raped, Aliyu said information before the Ministry of Education showed that the survivor’s grandmother went to the Islamic school authority and lodged a complaint but was allegedly beaten by the students and teachers and chased out of the school premises.

Aliyu added that the state Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, has ordered that the Islamiyah School be shut down indefinitely until an investigation was concluded and the culprit apprehended.

“The headmaster of the school would be held responsible for the act until all persons in the school were profiled and the perpetrator identified by the survivor and prosecuted.

“The individuals responsible for the violence against the grandmother, especially the headmaster, will also be prosecuted.

“This is in line with the state government’s responsibility in protecting the vulnerable population in the state,” Aliyu said.

The headteacher of the Islamyah School, Malam Kabir Abdullahi, however, denied the allegation, saying:

“It is not a rape. What we gathered is that an unidentified boy injured the girl in her private parts with a stick,” he reportedly said.

Abdullahi said that the case was already being investigated by the Divisional Police Officer (DPO), Rigasa, Abubakar Bauranya, who also confirmed receiving the case and equally aligned with the narrative of the head teacher of the school.

However, the grandmother of the victim, Hajiya Batul Gambo, insisted that her grandchild was violated and had been confirmed by Sexual Assault Referral Centre, Yusuf Dantsoho Memorial Hospital Tudun Wada, Kaduna.

A medical report signed by Dr A Raji confirmed Gambo’s claim that the six-year-old was raped.

Raji’s report attributed the bleeding to “virginal bruising of the labia minora, bilaterally per urethral bruising, heamatoma of the clitoris and laceration of the hymen.”

Also Read: Child Abuse in the Name of Discipline

Commenting on the rape and impregnation of the 12-year-old girl in Kachia, Aliyu said that the survivor was already six months pregnant.

He said that the school was equally closed as directed by El-Rufai, stressing that the safety of the pupils cannot be guaranteed.

“Meanwhile, the two schools will remain closed until investigations are concluded and the culprit prosecuted in accordance with the law,” he said.