The Senate is currently involved in the ongoing controversy over the new curriculum.
playThe Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) has succeeded in dragging the Nigerian Senate into the ongoing religious studies drama.
On July 12, 2017, CAN representatives visited the Senate President, Dr Abubakar Bukola Saraki in Abuja.
The CAN National President, Dr Supo Ayokunle, was represented by the leader of the delegation, Prof. Charles Adeyinka Adisa.
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Nigeria
(guardian)
During the visit, CAN urged the National Assembly to step in and ensure the “abolition of obnoxious laws that infringe on freedom of worship.”
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Saraki responded by saying that the Senate would carry out an investigation. He also advised CAN and other stakeholders to remain calm.
In a statement by his Special Assistant on Public Affairs, Mohammed Isa, the Senate president made explanations for the new policy.
He said: “As leaders, we must continue to seek and find solutions to problems. You will remember that in 2010, the past administration came up with reforms on how to reduce the number of subjects at the basic education level.
“There were about 20 subjects at that time, and subsequently they were reduced to 12. In the process of implementing that reforms, we have this problem. Why I am saying this, is so we don’t leave here and believe that it was done to favour one religion over the other.
“Now the reform is clearly not working. So our responsibility is to look into that reform and make it work. I am sure that there was no intention to make one group feel disadvantaged with this new school curriculum.
"This is why this Senate will direct our Committee on education to look at the reform and find out why it is not working with the relevant stakeholders.”
This visit comes after the leadership of CAN has sent a letter to Saraki on the new education curriculum which was referred to as 'obnoxious, offensive and provocative.'
Meanwhile, the House of Representatives has kicked against the new education curriculum.
Vanguard reports that with a unanimous voice vote, the House proposed that Christian Religious Knowledge (CRK) should be left as a stand-alone subject.
Basically, the lawmakers all agreed that Islamic Religious Knowledge (IRK) and CRK should be taught separately. This goes against the new curriculum that CRK and IRK under Religious and National Values Education (RVE).
Civic Education, Social Studies and Security Education are also under RVE.
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National Values
(nigerianbulletin)
The vote was followed by a motion, titled “Call to make Civic Education an optional instead of a compulsory subject for Senior Certificate Examination”, by Beni Lar from Plateau State.
Moving the motion, Lar said: “Under the previous Secondary School Curriculum which brought a lot of discontentment, Civic Education was not a compulsory subject and religious education was taught as Islamic Religious Knowledge (IRK) and Christian Religious Knowledge (CRK), both of which were optional subjects.
"The Federal Ministry of Education introduced a revised curriculum without due consultation with parents and stakeholders and the new nine-year Basic Education Curriculum on Religion and National Values Consolidated Religious Education and Civic Education under National Values and made Civic Education a compulsory subject for Senior Secondary Certificate Examinations.”
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The lawmaker went on to state reasons why the new curriculum is problematic.
According to him, the new curriculum does not agree with the religious beliefs of the people.
He said that “Section 10 of the 1999 Constitution makes Nigeria a secular state and, therefore, Religion should be separated from national values.”
Lar also that the “curriculum for primary one to three, which is the formative stage of a child does not provide for the adequate teaching of the religious beliefs of the people but rather destructive half-truths which destroy the fundamental beliefs and erodes the essence of such religion being taught the children.”
He was supported by the Majority Leader of the House, Femi Gbajabiamila from Lagos State, Ben Nwankwo ( Imo state- PDP) and Okey Jev (Benue- APC).
Rita Orji (Lagos, PDP), Aminu Shehu Shagari ( Sokoto), and the presiding officer of the House and Deputy Speaker, Yusuf Lasun also supported the motion.
Faulting the new curriculum, Lasun said: “This policy is completely wrong. If the Ministry of Education had studied our Constitution carefully, it wouldn’t have come up with such policy that is totally against freedom of religion.”
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In other news, Naij reports that the management of the Nigerian Educational Research and Development Council (NERDC) is doing its best to separate CRK and IRK.
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The majority, 70.5%, of Pulse readers say religion should still be taught in schools, while 29.5% say it should not
(pulsepoll)
Reportedly, an approval has been given to ensure that CRK and IRK are stand-alone subjects