8 - Freedom and Control: Islam and Christianity at the Federal Polytechnic

Summary

Like many ostensibly secular institutions in Nigeria, the Federal Polytechnic of Ede is a space that is in reality highly contested between two religions: Islam and Christianity. The institution operates within a predominantly Muslim town, but a large proportion of its staff and students are Christian. In the educational space of the Federal Polytechnic, religious contestation is often expressed through truth-claiming rhetoric from different sides. However, there is a strong commitment within the institution to ensure that such claims do not lead to conflict. A senior member of staff in the institution explained that, ‘a Christian will tell you that […] what I believe is supreme, a Muslim will also say […] what I believe is supreme, but what is important is how you pursue these claims’.

The role of religious rhetoric in shaping the construction of the other in educational contexts has been given some attention in the literature. Aware of the potential problems associated with intense competition, the leadership of the Federal Polytechnic has taken an active approach towards preventing conflict by controlling both Muslim and Christian activities through integration into the institutional hierarchy. This chapter explores the forms of religious coexistence and tolerance produced by this institutionalised incorporation of Islam and Christianity at the Federal Polytechnic.

Reflecting local ideas of authority in relation to the ownership of social and physical space, the leadership of the Federal Polytechnic has established clear rules for the management of the mutually exclusive claims of Muslims and Christians on campus. In line with more generally held ideas about religious neutrality as equal treatment or at least a lack of disadvantage (see chapters 2 and 3), the institution conceives of Muslims and Christians as equal counterparts linked into the university hierarchy in parallel ways. All Muslim and Christian groups and individuals are automatically part of a community associated with their respective religion and led by university staff. Thus the institution both creates cohesive Muslim and Christian communities and maintains control over their activities. In this context, good relations, and indeed tolerance, between Muslims and Christians are based on the premise that Islam and Christianity are equivalent religions with internally cohesive practices and clearly circumscribed boundaries.