Duale cautions school heads against suspending students over hijab

Garissa Township Member of Parliament Aden Duale has now cautioned school heads in his constituency against banning Muslim students from wearing hijabs.

Speaking in Boystown Secondary School after receiving revision textbooks from Kenya Literature Bureau (KLB) worth Ksh.5 million on Saturday, Duale said this amounts to religious discrimination and a violation of the students’ constitutional rights.

According to the Leader of Majority in the National Assembly, “all religious faiths and their beliefs including what they wear have been recognized by the Constitution.”

The MP’s remarks come a month after seven students from Thaara Secondary School in Murang’a County were sent home after for allegedly wearing hijabs.

The Forms One and Two students were reportedly sent home to bring their parents after they allegedly sought permission to pray during Idd-ul-Fitr.

One of their parents later told the press that – upon appearing at the institution – they were informed that students were only required to wear hijabs without covering their ears.

Failure to which, the parent added, they would have to transfer their children to other schools.

When the parents objected to this, the students were sent home, leading to massive uproar.