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Ending the Almajiri Abuse: A Call for Urgent Action

By : Maria Livinus 

Saturday, 26 April 2025

The recent viral video showing a supposed Islamic cleric viciously assaulting a young almajiri pupil in Borno State is a grim reminder of the systemic failure that continues to rob Northern Nigeria's children of their dignity, future, and humanity.

In the disturbing footage, 10-year-old Bashir Gaji is seen being brutally beaten by Bukar Modu, who appeared mentally unstable, for allegedly missing class in the Bulabulin area of Maiduguri, the state capital.

Reacting swiftly, Governor Babagana Umara Zulum ordered the immediate arrest and prosecution of the perpetrator. He also met with the victim at the Government House.

“This heinous act is an affront to our values and a betrayal of our duty to protect our children, students, and minors under our guardianship," the governor said. "We cannot tolerate such atrocities recurring endlessly. Our children deserve a safe environment to grow and thrive."

Governor Zulum further directed the Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development to enhance community sensitisation efforts. He pledged a fully furnished house for Gaji’s displaced family and awarded the boy a full educational scholarship.
Gaji and his family currently reside in an Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camp after Boko Haram insurgents killed his father.

The viral footage has since unleashed a torrent of other videos, revealing further brutal abuses within the almajiri system. In one shocking clip, a teacher is seen beating several young boys mercilessly, seemingly taking pleasure in their pain.

While the nationwide outrage is justified, mere condemnation is no longer enough. Nigeria must urgently dismantle the cruel and outdated almajiri (tsangaya) system and replace it with a humane, modern educational model that protects children’s rights and nurtures their potential.

Today, the almajiri system stands as a deep scar on Northern Nigeria. Under the guise of religious education, it strips children—some as young as five—away from their families and subjects them to lives of begging, hardship, and abuse under the control of clerics who often exploit them.

The attempt to reform this broken system through Tsangaya Model Schools, launched under former President Goodluck Jonathan, was a commendable initiative. These schools aimed to blend Islamic and Western education in a structured, safe environment. However, the effort faltered due to a lack of political commitment, mismanagement, underfunding, and the failure to engage community leaders at the grassroots level.

Parents continue to hand over their children to the almajiri system, driven by poverty and a misguided belief that enduring hardship under a cleric guarantees spiritual merit. Sadly, this belief is often abused by clerics who use these children as free labor and a source of personal income.

In reality, most almajirai neither acquire meaningful Islamic knowledge nor receive any certification that could enable them to become productive citizens. Instead, they grow up vulnerable to criminal recruitment, political manipulation, and religious extremism. Yet, year after year, successive governments look away.

Enough is enough. Leaders at every level—the president, governors, lawmakers, and traditional rulers—must decisively declare the almajiri system unacceptable. Continued silence only fosters complicity.

The National Commission for Almajiri Education and Out-of-School Children (NCAOOSC) must abandon top-down, bureaucratic approaches and work closely with ward heads, local government chairmen, traditional rulers, and other grassroots leaders to achieve real reform. Without community buy-in, no policy will succeed.

Clerics found guilty of abusing almajirai must face the full weight of the law. Religion or tradition must not shield criminals. Child abuse, in any form, is a crime and must be prosecuted as such.

Moreover, the Child Rights Act must be domesticated and enforced across all northern states. It is a national disgrace that many states have failed to adopt and implement this critical law. A country that allows millions of its children to roam the streets without education, dignity, or hope cannot overcome poverty, insecurity, or underdevelopment.

Nigeria cannot afford another decade of indifference. We owe it to the almajirai—the abandoned children of the North—to break the cycle of suffering and open the doors to a future of hope, opportunity, and human dignity.

Source: Daily trust