An Islamic cleric in Osun State, Habeebulah Abdulrahman, (popularly known as Al-Edewy), has been accused of raping a 16-year-old female student of his Islamic school.
In response, Mr Abdulrahman told PREMIUM TIMES the teenager is his wife and he had the right to have sexual intercourse with her.
The victim, born in 2003, lost her dad at a young age but stays with her mother in Ede, a town in Osun State. She recently completed her junior secondary education in the town.
PREMIUM TIMES’ investigation revealed that the cleric, in January, invited the girl to join his Islamic class not far from her house, for proper Qur’anic teachings. The girl yielded with the consent of her mum.
But the Islamic scholar after a while requested her hand in marriage. The girl on several occasions rejected the proposal but Mr Abdulrahman persisted until he raped her.
This newspaper gathered that he gave the victim several gifts with the motive of luring her into marriage, but when confronted he claimed he was only supporting because she has no father.
