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FARMERS – HERDSMEN CLASHES, ISLAM AND ROLE OF THE MEDIA

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Farmers-herdsmen clashes, Islam and the role of the media

By Rasheed Abubakar, January 26, 2018

See newspaper covers HERE: https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=1756315467775802&id=748209658586393
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The prominent and frequent use of the phrase “Islamic State” as part of the headlines of many Nigerian newspapers on January 22, 2018 left me very uncomfortable, as they gleefully reported the alleged infiltration of foreign terrorist groups into Nigeria. However, can one really blame The Nation, The Guardian, Vanguard and other newspapers for flaunting the phrase on their front cover?

Obviously not! Yet, one may then ask; why? This is because those extremists have indeed unfortunately ascribed the term “Islamic State” to themselves, with their bases located in Iraq and Syria and of recent, Nigeria’s Boko Haram evolving into their West African branch. Interestingly, in today’s world, anybody or group can call itself any name, just like those who ascribe “holiness” to themselves as the only perfect and “saved group” of the Muslim Ummah.

Little wonder many of the top Nigerian newspapers featured the Department of State Service (DSS) report about the activities of the deadly group in some North Central and South-South states of the country with different headlines, such as: Security agents: Islamic State fighters in Nigeria – The Nation; IS infiltrates Benue, Edo, Kogi States, Presidency raises the alarm – Vanguard; and Government uncovers Islamic State network in Nigeria – The Guardian, among others.

Some newspapers such as The Sun and New Telegraph chose to use “Foreign Terrorists” instead, with the latter adding the tags “Mercenaries” and “Islamic fighters,” whom according to the statement attributed to the Presidency, are planning to Islamise Nigeria, which contradicted Vice President Yemi Osinbajo’s earlier statement that nobody can Islamise Nigeria.

Irrespective of the tag and the intent, Islam, the religion of Allah, sent through our beloved leader, Muhammad (peace be upon him) is free from whatever evils perpetrated by anyone or group in its lofty name. Hence, nobody, not even the media institutions, can force or coerce the global 1.6 billion Muslim population into accepting what is not part of Islam.

That is why the Arabs and some world leaders like Barrack Obama, Francois Hollande, David Cameron, Tony Abbott and a handful of international media as well as western writers like Jen Percy and Zeba Khan would rather call the Tekfeer-terrorist group “Daesh”, an acronym for the Arabic phrase; “al-Dawla al-Islamiya al-Iraq al-Sham”, meaning “the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant”. The BBC, often imitated by most Nigerian media, sometimes uses the tag “the so-called Islamic state”.

The continuous use of the name “Daesh” globally angered the group, and it threatened in 2015 to cut the tongue of anyone who publicly used the acronym “Daesh”, which is similar to the Arabic word “Da’asa” (verb), meaning “to trample” or “crush”. The present participle “Da’es”, meaning “crusher” sounds similar to “Da’esh” or better still, “Dahes”, translated as “one who sows discord”.

_Dear Nigerian media, is it possible we stop calling them what they are not and the honourable title they do not deserve – “Islamic State”? They are not a State, not to even talk of representing Islam. I am joining millions of Nigerian Muslims to propose a different name in accordance with global yearnings. Please call them Daesh, Da’es or Dahes._

Addressing the root cause

Away from the name tagging, the Nigerian media need to address another mind-boggling issue. It is important to address the root cause of instability and incessant clashes affecting the North Central region of Nigeria between herdsmen and farmers, leading to the deaths of several innocent Nigerians. There is no gainsaying that the media have been criminally biased in their coverage of the alleged massacre of 800 Fulani herdsmen, their families and the burning of their abodes on the Mambila Plateau in Taraba State by the local militia in 2017, and the reportage of the recent gruesome murder of 73 non-Fulanis in Benue State.

The politicisation of the massacres and comparisons over the number of deaths on both sides would not have sparked controversies if the Nigerian media had embarked on independent investigations into all the killings, particularly the Taraba/Benue pogroms, and exposed the perpetrators and their sponsors. There would not have been lamentations of media bias from the Muslims who believe the Nigerian media deliberately underreported the Taraba killings because the victims were Fulani-Muslims, and gave prominence to the Benue killings because the victims were Benue-Christians.

It is sad that the Nigerian media, otherwise called the champions of Nigeria’s democracy (because of the veritable role media professionals played during the military era), have not invested or deliberately refused to venture into investigative journalism after all their years of “enormous successes”. Rather, they have continued to spread fake news and verbatim news reports with screaming and sensationalised headlines on the cyber space, a practice which has created more fear than hope for Nigerians.

It all began with the indiscriminate and careless use of online images of foreign herdsmen brandishing different assorted arms to depict the Nigerian scenario. Many of the Nigerian print and online media are culprits here, although some are beginning to be more pseudo-circumspect by writing “for illustration only” on such images, after they must have used those images and got the undiscerning or innocent readers confused and wrongly indoctrinated.

Personal deductions

What I (as an individual) have read about the Fulani herdsmen/farmers clashes are more of press releases of what happened from the Federal Government or State Government stables, with accusations and counter-accusations from the pro and anti-Fulani herdsmen. I have also seen buck passing between the interest groups, particularly the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN); which has continuously raised false alarms over a phantom-false plot to Islamise Nigeria by the so-called Jihadists, and Jama’atu Nasrul Islami (JNI) and Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA)’s rejoinders.

As the killing of innocent souls continues on both sides, some prominent Nigerian Pastors are promoting hate speeches, instigating their members to “kill” and “crush” the Fulani-Muslims in self-defence. I have also read in the media several anti-Fulani herdsmen organisations and personalities calling on the Federal Government to declare Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN) a terrorist organisation, claiming that “they are a trans-border army conducting attacks all over Nigeria”.

Of course, without independent investigations, all these parties would defend the interests they represent in the crisis, as recently done by one of MACBAN’s patrons, the Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi II, who affirmed that the group is non-violent, and unearthed alleged proofs of massacres and pogroms by the anti-Fulanis in North-Central Nigeria.

Sometimes, I keep asking myself anytime I read news of Fulani killings on the pages of newspapers; _what could make a Fulani man leave his beloved cows untended and run after the lives of innocent people? What could make him become a killer of men rather than the herder of cattle he is?_ It became clear to me that the killers might not be real Fulani herdsmen, following the security operatives’ reports about the infiltration of mercenaries into some of the troubled regions of Benue, Taraba, Kogi and Edo States as stated earlier in this piece.

According to the report, many of the arrested suspects, consisting of herdsmen, government-sponsored militias, militants and other miscreants in the Benue valley, Akoko Edo, Okpella and Benin in Edo State and Okene in Kogi State spoke only the French language, and were unable to communicate in any of the Nigerian dialects, which suggests that they are foreigners with a mission to destabilize Nigeria with their false “Islamisation agenda” – a mere propaganda against Islam and Nigerian Muslims.

Reports like this show how insecure our borders are. Of course, these foreign mercenaries would have infiltrated the country through any of the 1400 illegal border routes identified by Prof. Oshita Oshita, during a roundtable discussion in Abuja at the weekend, which was aimed at finding solutions to the herdsmen-farmers attacks in Benue, Plateau, Taraba and Nasarawa states.

Prof. Oshita, the Director General, Institute for Peace and Conflict Resolution (IPCR) said that out of the 1400 illegal border routes, Adamawa state alone has over 80. Is that not worrisome?

Conclusion

The blame game must stop now. All hands must be on deck to protect lives and property of all Nigerians, irrespective of tribe and religion. It is not too late for the Muhammadu Buhari-led administration to right its wrongs by working closely with the Governors of the affected States to put an end to the incessant killings. We must do everything possible not to create another deadly monster from the Fulani-farmer clashes.

The Federal and State Governments should embrace ranching, which many Nigerians believe will end the herdsmen/farmers clashes. The role of the media in conflict resolution cannot be over-emphasised. Nigerian media must see themselves as partners in progress with government, and do their best to be more responsible than being responsive.

The life of every Nigerian is sacred and must not be taken unjustly. As it has been said earlier in this column times without number, in Islam, the killing of even a soul is strongly forbidden. Complete disregard for human life is one of the major reasons why terrorist groups like Daesh and Boko Haram are not considered Islamic, because they act contrary to the Noble Qur’an 5: 32, where Allah warns: _“Whoever kills a soul, it is as if he had slain the entire mankind. And whoever saves one life, it is as if he had saved the entire mankind”._

Lastly, you and I have a role to play by providing security agencies with relevant information about any suspicious people, movement or activities in our immediate environment or on our cyber space.

Imagine a crime-free world where we all live in peace? It begins with you. Islam is peace, it preaches peace and enjoins peace.

– Rasheed Abubakar is a journalist and the author of “Hijab and the Nigerian Press”. Email: rawshield123@gmaAbubakar

Rasheed Abubakar @ .Knowislam.com.ng

What were you doing in an empty room?

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what were you doing in an empty room, the first question to ask a rape victim?
how true is it that it takes a considerable ton of knowledge for one to know just how ignorant he is.
A vast majority of people would attest to the fact that they have a bit of problem with their construction of sentences in English
language, especially when it comes to the proper usage and placement of modifiers,
but none would ever agree to the fact that he knows not where to place and when to ask those accusing questions whose
functions are only to impute guilt and blame to a rape victim, albeit, it might not be intentional but responsive;
Neither of the two does not go down to utter ignorance.
Recently, the wrath of social media warriors was provoked by the infuriating news of 7 year old Zaynab who was raped and
murdered in the Pakistani city of Kasur; but alas, the supposed embitterment stirred by the news only prompted and provoked the
unruly comments of e-warriors that were uncalled for.
A particular comment that caught my attention was that of a ’warrior’ asking what the he** the parents were doing that they left
their seven year old to the claws of the fast devouring monster, rape, as if they had thrown Zaynab at an Institute of rape and
even filled a form for her.
Another ’warrior’ lamented how the innocent girl had lost her values and innocence, rather than how a man had stolen her
innocence and.. well, her values still glitter untouched.
Screening their comments, it can be understood that the ’gentlemen’ were infuriated by the news, but were those the first
questions to ask? how would those have helped in soothing the bereaved parents?
We will all agree to the fact that their approaches weren’t the most perfect ones, but are we all not guilty of the same?
Do we not ask a rape victim first if she was alone in the room with her rapist, do we not ask if she had a full jilbaab on when she
was raped or had she only a head scarf on her? Do we not say, when we see women who are dressed, yet unclad that if they
were to be raped, they would put the blame on men rather than themselves, as if justifying the dehumanizing act.
Do we not say those as if the fact that the woman was unclad would lessen the retribution for rape when the rapist faces Allah?
All these point to a common thing; we are empowering the rapists by ensuring that the first thing we do when we hear a story is to
rummage the story and pick on a point where the victim is to blame.
And in the case of a 7-year old whose heart is too fragile to embody the blames, we immediately turn to her parents and in the
process forget about the rapist.
The intrinsic effect of those responsive comments is that the victim sees things from an angle which sincerely is the angle from
which we can see the most vivid pictures.
What the victim sees? You are being sympathetic towards the rapist and not her since you keep blaming her for attracting and
not doing things to repel the rapist. It sounds to them like, “poor man, had the foolish girl left the room, he wouldn’t have been the one everyone is blaming now, see how she got the man suffering due to her own stupidity”
And that is the fear most rape victims have that makes them keep to themselves. I tell you, like I once mentioned in a poem of
mine, that
many a lady has been a victim of rape, and ’lady’ saves neither your daughter nor sister.
While we say this though, it might be necessary to state that no one says that it is wrong to try to correct the mistake she made,
but definitely not as an immediate response to the news. And, from what I’ve read, it might even be unnecessary to ever talk
about her mistakes. This is because rape Victims have a natural tendency to look for every possible way to blame themselves,
and that is the main reason why the effect lasts for a long time. As long as she feels she should have done something to prevent
the rape each time something triggers memories of it, she would keep on being consumed by its effect.
So, you think you’re still the best person to point to her mistakes for her? she knows a billion and would never repeat them. yours
is to comfort her and not point to her mistakes, except of course, when you realize she doesn’t seem to believe she did anything
wrong despite having had only a headscarf on her, or being alone with a non-Mahram. But, while we are at that, we should also
understand that it is better not to link those mistakes directly to the rape, but rather, treat them separately from the angle of going
against Allah’s orders. You can simply tell her being alone with a man was a sin, but must you tell her that was why she got
raped? Must you expose her to these scars once again?
If you disagree, and are an exponent of the belief that she has to be repeatedly lectured to understand that those mistakes were
the cause of the rape, then I tell you, that if
you don’t know of a chaste
sister who has been raped, of one whose dressing aligns with the Islamic teachings, well I do, and lots of us do. Who is talking of
a jilbaabite? mtcheeeeew, niqabite is what we are saying here. but you’ll never know. why? because these sisters have a fear
your responses would go thus: “were you in your jilbaab?” yes. “Niqaab?” yes. “ehhhm, were you guys like close, like you do
chat?” no. “but you weren’t dumb when he entered the room, you weren’t disabled, you should have left immediately”
And wouldn’t it?
Also, we must understand that while it is compulsory that we instill and inculcate moral values in our daughters, it Is wrong,
totally wrong to rear them with that feeling that by simply covering up properly and adhering strictly to Allah’s laws, they would be
free from all sort of harms. what assures you of that? if it were so, then there would be no need for a Mahram when traveling, as
long as the sister is covered in jilbaab.
We must understand that if they are reared with this sort of thinking, they might never recover from a rape as their nights would
continue to be haunted and their lives, marred by the belief. They would keep rummaging their memories for that point where they
sinned to have deserved that. They would continue to live with that feeling that the rape was all their fault even if they can’t point
to a cogent mistake they made.
And if it were right to teach them such, then, we go to the Hadith which states that those of human beings befallen by the most
severe of trials are the Prophets. Are they the most prominent sinners?

If we are the most vehement propagators of traveling with a Mahram, then it doesn’t align with our ideas that we search for holes
to pick on in rape stories.
yes, we can learn and warn others from a victim’s mistake, but if we really hope to see her get back to living a normal life, we
must not make picking on her own mistakes the first thing we do when we listen to her.
The feeling it wrenches in her is that she deserved to be raped because of the mistake. Does anyone deserve to be raped?
Well, I think it is time we stopped thinking of rape as solely being the victim’s fault, meanwhile, she deserves little to nothing of the
blame.
None of us would plead guilty to the charge, but are we not really guilty of it?
how many parents teach their boys how bad and brazen it is to rape? they only teach the girls how to dress chastely and not stay
out late to avoid being raped. it shows that we believe that rape is all about the girl, if she dresses chastely and adheres strictly to
Allah’s laws, she doesn’t get raped, but if she doesn’t, she forces an ’innocent’ boy into a precarious situation where the only way
out is to rape her. Meanwhile, we boys should be taught simultaneously not to rape.
A good example: A Muslim is ordered to lower his gaze while the Muslimah is ordered to dress chastely (simultaneously), but if
the Muslimah fails to comply, does that then permits the man to look at her lustrously? and if he does that, does the severity of
his punishment abate because the lady failed to dress appropriately?

If it is so, then we have a long way to go with our kids, for what but sound knowledge of Islam instills in them that righteousness
that suppresses the natural will to rape?
Someone would say it is not natural, but this article is for theists. Next person!

Abdurrahman Alhasan Adedokun.
(Lan Rey Hasan)

Misgoded reading continued

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Click here for previous session

 

 

Incidentally, once this contradiction became known, Bible translators tried to
make it disappear. For example, the New Revised Standard Version translates the
Hebrew yisre’eliy in 2 Samuel 17:25 to “Ishmaelite,” and then acknowledges in a discrete
footnote that the correct translation is “Israelite.” Yishma’e’li is “Ishmaelite.” The
evidence against the translators’ integrity is strengthened by the fact that practically any
Bible published prior to the mid­twentieth century (including the American Standard
Version of 1901, upon which the RSV and NRSV are based) translate yisre’eliy to
“Israelite.” Only after the scriptural inconsistency was identified was the translation
corrupted to “Ishmaelite.”
By this modern deception, the New Revised Standard Version avoids conflict in
their translation, but not in the source documents. And we would do well to note this
deceit, for will we truly be surprised if future Bible translations attempt to gloss over the
other errors exposed in this present work?
Now, here’s the point. 2 Kings 19 and Isaiah 37 contain a sequence of thirty­
seven verses which correspond virtually to the letter. This correspondence is so exact that
Bible critics have suggested that the authors plagiarized either from one another or from
the same source document. And while plagiarism would explain the consistency, a more
generous suggestion might be that these two chapters exemplify the exquisite accuracy we expect from a book of God. Whether a story is retold once, twice or a thousand times,
as long as the origin of the tradition lies in revelation from the Almighty, it shouldn’t
change. Not in the smallest detail. The fact that stories do change, both in Old and New
Testaments, threatens the claim to biblical inerrancy.
And then there are the simple questions. Questions like, “Does anybody really
believe that Jacob wrestled with God, and Jacob prevailed (Genesis 32:24­30)?” The
Creator of a universe 240,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 miles in diameter with all its
intricacies, with the measly, middleweight planet Earth alone weighing in at
5,976,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 kg,—and someone believes that a paltry blob of
protoplasm not only wrestled with The One who created him, but prevailed?
Another simple question: Genesis 2:17 records God warning Adam, “but of the
tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it
you shall surely die.” Genesis 3:3 contributes, “but of the fruit of the tree which is in the
midst of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you
die.’” So which is it? Did Adam bite the apple or didn’t he? The way the story is told, he
bit the apple and lived. Yet God promised death the very same day. So did he bite it or
not? If he did he should have died, and if he didn’t, mankind should still be in paradise. Is
the word “die” an error of translation, a metaphor or an inconsistency? If an error, then let
the translators admit it. If a metaphor, then we can acknowledge the metaphorical nature
of Hebrew idiom and suggest that Jesus, similarly, didn’t “die” any more than Adam did.
And if an inconsistency, well …
Next point—who wrote the Old Testament? Tradition relates that Moses wrote
the Pentateuch (the first five books), but we can assume he encountered a slight technical difficulty (like the fact that he was dead) when it came to recording his own obituary in
Deuteronomy 34:5­12. So who authored his death, burial, wake, and the aftermath? Is
this author to be trusted, and what does this say about authorship of the Old Testament as
a whole?
Then there are the tales of naked drunkenness, incest and whoredom that no
person of modesty could read to their mother, much less to their own children. And yet, a
fifth of the world’s population trusts a book which records that Noah “drank of the wine
and was drunk, and became uncovered (naked) in his tent” (Genesis 9:22), and that
Lot …
… went up out of Zoar and dwelt in the mountains, and his two
daughters were with him; for he was afraid to dwell in Zoar. And he and
his two daughters dwelt in a cave. Now the firstborn said to the younger,
“Our father is old, and there is no man on the earth to come in to us as is
the custom of all the earth. Come, let us make our father drink wine, and
we will lie with him, that we may preserve the lineage of our father.” So
they made their father drink wine that night. And the firstborn went in and
lay with her father, and he did not know when she lay down or when she
arose. It happened on the next day that the firstborn said to the younger,
“Indeed I lay with my father last night; let us make him drink wine tonight
also, and you go in and lie with him, that we may preserve the lineage of
our father.” Then they made their father drink wine that night also. And
the younger arose and lay with him, and he did not know when she lay down or when she arose. Thus both the daughters of Lot were with child
by their father (Genesis 19:30­36).
Tales of debauchery and deviancy include adultery and prostitution (Genesis
38:15­26), more prostitution (Judges 16:1), wholesale depravity (2 Samuel 16:20­23),
whoredom (Ezekiel 16:20­34 and 23:1­21), and whoredom spiced with adultery
(Proverbs 7:10­19). The incestuous rape of Tamar in 2 Samuel 13:7­14 bears a most
interesting moral, for Tamar was counseled to “hold her peace,” for “He [the rapist,
Amnon] is your brother; (so) do not take this thing to heart” (2 Samuel 13:20). Oh,
whew, the rapist was her brother—no problem, then . . . Say WHAT? Are we to believe
that such “pearls of wisdom” are the fruits of revelation—or the stuff of deviant dreams?
And on the subject of dreaming, 2 Timothy 3:16 reads, “All scripture is given by
inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for
instruction in righteousness.” Now that makes sense. That’s the way it should be. But can
anyone conceive the “profit, reproof, correction, or instruction in righteousness”
conveyed in the above passages? Those who think they can probably should be in jail.
Another curiosity—according to Genesis 38:15­30, Perez and Zerah were born to
Tamar after incestuous fornication with her father­in­law, Judah. Passing over the fact
that, according to Leviticus 20:12, both Judah and Tamar should have been executed (and
prophets are not above the law), let’s inspect the lineage of Perez and Zerah. After all, the
alleged “word of God” tells us, “One of illegitimate birth shall not enter the congregation
of the Lord; even to the tenth generation none of his descendants shall enter the
congregation of the Lord” (Deuteronomy 23:2).

So who was the tenth generation from Zerah?
No one important.  Well, then, who was the tenth generation from Perez?
Someone very important—someone named Solomon. His father (the ninth
generation) also has a familiar­sounding name—David.
If we trust Matthew 1:3­6, David was the ninth generation of a bastard, and as
such, should by no way enter the “congregation of the Lord.” The same goes for
Solomon. And yet, both are held to have been patriarchs, if not prophets.
Hmm. An awkward understanding, at best.
Furthermore, if we are to believe the Old Testament, Solomon was not only the
tenth generation of illegitimacy through Perez, but also the first generation of illegitimacy
through his father, David’s, adulterous union with Bathsheba, the wife of Uriah (2
Samuel 11:2­4). Once again, breezing past the unfulfilled death penalty (Leviticus 20:10),
Solomon is portrayed as having a double­dose of illegitimacy.
Or does he?
Something doesn’t sound right. Either David and Solomon were not prophets or
the Old Testament is not to be trusted. The pieces of God­given revelation shouldn’t
require reshaping and forced to fit together. They should snap together in congruence
with the perfection of the One who created the heavens and earth in perfect harmony.
That’s the way it should be, and the average Christian suggests that such is precisely the
case with the New Testament.
However, that assertion deserves inspection as well. Having examined the above,
we can readily understand why the author of Jeremiah bewails, “How can you say, ‘We are wise, and the law of the Lord is with us?’ Look, the false pen of the scribe certainly
works falsehood” (Jeremiah 8:8). The New Revised Standard Version, unlike the New
King James Version, doesn’t soften their words, and records this verse as, “How can you
say, ‘We are wise, and the law of the Lord is with us,’ when in fact, the false pen of the
scribes has made it into a lie?”
So that is the Old Testament—so full of errors that even one of the authors
bemoans the scriptural corruption generated by the “false pens of the scribes.”
Many claim that similar problems plague the New Testament—that weaknesses,
inconsistencies and contradictions upset the claim of divine inerrancy. If true, Christians
face the challenge, “Are you a person of God, or of Christianity?”
This question demands testimony.
Followers of God will submit to the truth He conveyed, when made clear, while
those who follow any man­made religion will defend their doctrine against reason and
revelation. Discussion of the frail or nonexistent foundation of the most passionately
defended Christian doctrines has already been offered. What remains to be examined is
the authority, or lack thereof, of the New Testament.

 

 

.…..continue reading…..

DELAY NOT REPENTANCE

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How many were the new brides who adorned themselves for their husbands but they didn’t live long to consummate?

How many were people who fixed their wedding date but didn’t live long to witness it?

How many were women who heard the cries of the baby during labour but didn’t live long to see the baby?

How many were people who were waiting for monday to receive their appointment letter but died on Sunday evening?

How many were people who wrote final exams but didn’t see results?

How many were the healthy people who suddenly died, and how many were the sicklers who lived for a long time?

How many were the football lovers who watched first half but didn’t witness second half?

How many were the youths who spent the evenings laughing wit their friends unaware that their white clothes are already awaiting them in the market?

How many people logged in on Facebook but they never logged out with their own hands?

How many were the babies whose birth is being celebrated only for them to die few minutes later on the same appointed night?

How many were people anticipating Ramadan but didn’t meet it?

How many were people trying to run away from death by bathing salt only for that same salt to kill them?

Don’t postpone till tomorrow, that which you can do today! The graves are filled with people who taught they would repent tomorrow but they were surprised by death. Learn from the stories of those who lived before you before you also become a story for those who would live after you!

Allah said, Oh mankind! Fear your Lord, for the convulsion of the final hour is a terrible thing. (Sūratul-Hājj vs 1).

May Allāh take our lives only when it’s best for us to go (Āmīn)

MADRASAH – THE BEST EDUCATION

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Why do we always differentiate between secular
schools and Madrasah?

We send our kids to school as early as age 1+ YET @3years we think they are too young for Madrasah.

We send them to the most expensive schools YET
we cant afford to pay little for mudaris monthly payment or even prefer to send them to our local mosque for free Madrasah, just as if the mudaris does not have a family or needs.

We always get a part time teacher if they have
problems at school YET we blame the mudaris or mudarisa for a child forgetting what has been taught.

We enrol them in summer classes YET we don’t care if madrasah is embedded with summer.

We encourage our kids to practice what they are
learning at school YET its difficult for them to practice Islam at home, some will even say: remove your hijab, you are not in your madrasah, you will use it when you get there.

We go an extra mile to make sure our kids have
done their homework YET we don’t even ask what
they studied in Madrasah or where the books are kept.

We scold our kids when they don’t attend school
YET a month or two of missing Madrasah is nothing.

We promise our kids gifts if they get a good
position at school YET we can’t even promise
anything for Madrasah

We tell the whole world how our children have
performed at school YET we can’t even tell our
friends when our child has finished Juzzu Ammah.

Some parents will say: they suppose to be reading Quran now, its 3 or 6months already, just as if the child passed all his/her grade exams in 3 or 6months that promotes them to lower secondary.

Kids while young, they grow up knowing how less
important Madrassah is in their life. They can’t
even equate it to the secular school and it’s all
because we as parents show them its less
important.

Let’s show our children that Madrassah is as
equally important as the secular school.

Muslim schools are now giving the best more than what you can imagine. Change your mindset!….if you do not have good schools in your area, then encourage people to start one or you start yourself, let us all stop shifting blames.

REMEMBER, YOUR CHILDREN WILL TESTIFY AGAINST YOU IF YOU LEAD THEM ASTRAY.

HOW TO PROPOSE TO A MAN

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HOW TO PROPOSE TO A MAN.

As muslims, our perception of love and marriage is quite different from what is generally known. So, if you find this post difficult to comprehend, you may wish to skip commenting.

It is perfectly OK for a lady to propose marriage to a man but here are some of the guidelines you should follow:

1. MAKE HIM PROPOSE.
Even though it is permissible for you to propose, it is still culturally more acceptable for the man to propose. So, if he is too shy to bell the cat, send him cues to show that you love him and you are ready to spend the rest of your life with him. Before you do this, make sure that the feeling is mutual. I was merely 17 (don’t judge me o) when I met fine Alhaji (then Fine boy, lol). Let’s just say, it was love at first sight. We connected almost immediately. The chemistry was catalytic. The biology was symbiotic. The physics was magnetic… OK, I’m just kidding! But you see, when two muslims fall in love, there is only one way to go about it – marriage. However, I didn’t go down on my knees with a diamond ring in the lobby of a mall with the whole world looking on. I simply gave him non-verbal cues to let him know that look, you must marry me ni o. He was extremely shy, but he popped the question anyway.

2. SEND SOMEONE.
If after all the cues, he is still hesitant, then send a trusted friend or family member to talk to him. Emphasis on the word “TRUSTED”. If you send your girlfriend who is equally crushing on the guy, or a man who is also interested in marrying you, you are OYO! We have a good example in our mother Khadeejah (رضي الله عنها) who sent her best friend, Nafeesah to propose to the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم). This intermediary also needs to be trusted in terms of his/her choice of words. See what Nafeesah said to the Prophet – “‘Why do you not get married?’ He answered, `My living conditions and financial situation do not allow me to get married’. Nafeesah said, `Will you agree to get married if this problem is solved and a rich, beautiful, and honorable woman from a well-known family asks you to marry her?’. He asked, `Who is this woman you are talking about?’ Nafeesah answered, ‘Khadeejah’… ”

…and the rest is history!

3. DO IT YOURSELF.
Yeah, you can simply walk up to the brother and tell him. Worst case scenario, he will say no. A good muslim brother will not make a big deal out of it or go about ridiculing you among his friends. Something like this also happened during the time of the Prophet. A lady wanted to marry the Prophet. He wasn’t interested in her and what he did was to simply ignore. His silence was understood and taken in good faith. When a guy is interested in you, silence doesn’t mean consent. You will know if he loves you and he will be clear about his response.

4. TALK TO YOUR WALIYY
This is only applicable if you have parents or guardians who understand the sunnah to some extent. Don’t try it with typical Yoruba parents o. They will roast you alive! So, if you have the guts, tell your father (or his representative) to help you talk to the man or the man’s parents. Make sure you do lots of istikhaarah and pray that everything works out for the best.

5. WRITE A LETTER
This may look old-fashioned or childish but guess what? It may work. If you are good at weaving words in a romantic way, write a letter, a short note or poem and send it to him directly or blindly. You can also send a mail or chat message but I DON’T subscribe to loose intermingling over the internet. Writing might also save you the embarrassment of receiving a NO to your face in case he is not interested.

6. EMPLOY THE SERVICE OF A MATCHMAKER
Joining a reliable, islamic matchmaking group is just like sending an open proposal to anyone. It is a better option than searching and proposing by yourself. Talk to your local Ameer, Imaam, etc and let them match you with “available” brothers. Again, this takes a high level of guts.

Finally, whatever you do, NEVER BE DESPERATE. The right man will find you or you will find him at the right time. What is meant for you will not miss you!

OK. Bye.

©KT
2018

AGONY OF MONOGAMY

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AGONY OF MONOGAMY written by Chief Tola Adeniyi, a former MD of daily times.

 

Society must rethink this issue of pretentious monogamy vis-à-vis polygamy so that in the not-too-distant future we do not end up with millions of unmarried women whose life style would be worse than prostitutes’ and millions of children whose fathers would be nowhere to be found.

The article is designed to expose the hypocrisy and pain associated with embracing false notions which are really not observed by any culture in the world, and to advise those who erroneously sentence themselves to a life of sadness and emptiness because they were deceived to believe that there is some utopia somewhere called monogamy.

I am very much aware that this article will generate a lot of controversy most especially from those who live holier-than-thou life and have continued to deceive the world that they are upholders of a doctrine that is not supported by true and enlightened interpretation of any religious doctrine.

My Greek, Italian, Russian, British, American and other Caucasians routinely visit their other wives [called by other names] with whom they have children. But back in the homes shared with the one carrying the ring, they are monogamists!

If God had wanted humanity to be monogamous He or She would not have made the pigeon the only monogamous creature. The cultures that practice polygamy had always known that at any given time, the number of available marriageable women far out number available men plus the fact that an 80-year-old man, if he has money, is still very much in the market whereas a 60-year-old woman may not be that lucky. The biological limitation to a woman’s productive age is also a factor. Why should a woman therefore remain on the shelf till age 45 when she could jolly well get married as second or sixth wife to a man who can afford to share life’s responsibilities with her? Why should a woman leave a man with whom she is No 1, simply because he took a second wife and end up being numberless in the hands of several men with whom she naturally shares bed just because of some doctrine she hardly understands?

All the women who should go and marry but are saying they do not want to share their man with another woman in a polygamous setting, are sharing current boyfriends with several other women. Where is the logic?

The argument that children in a polygamous house are always at each other’s throat does not hold water. Many siblings of monogamous families are known to have had worse and irresolvable, irreconcilable squabble, with dirty bitterness over inheritance than children from different mothers.

The agony suffered by both men and women in the hand of unnatural laws and doctrines is too stifling for comfort. In 2002, five hundred and two Reverend mothers were reported to have died while procuring abortion in Rome. Nigerian Tribune wrote an editorial on the unfortunate incident. And stories of Reverend fathers having children and sodomising young men in their care are legion! Why the hypocrisy? Why should the world continue to live the life of Ostrich?

A well known Nigerian journalist hid his other wives from his wife because his religion would not permit of it and his wife, living in monogamy should not hear of it. At his funeral, 9 Funeral Service programmes by his 9 wives surfaced and the woman parading the ring collapsed. It was the grace of God that prevented double interment that day!

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Allah, the Almighty says, in the Quran (chapter 2 v 216),
“And it may be that you dislike a thing which is good for you and that you like a thing which is bad for you. Allah knows but you do not know.”

'Aqeedah First'

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‘Aqeedah First!

Sometimes when you are warning people against things that are prohibited in Islam, and they still go ahead doing them, don’t be surprised. How much of matters of ‘aqeedah have you been able to install in their memory before discussing other issues? The answer to this question would let you know why it is often difficult to convince people who are yet to understand ‘aqeedah to adhere to the Sunnah and abstain from prohibited (haram) things.

By Allah, adequate knowledge of ‘aqeedah (taoheed) is the first thing that would make a Muslim realize the importance of placing Allah and His Messenger صلى الله عليه وسلم in whatever he does. If a person doesn’t know about Allah, His names and attributes, how would he be able to give Him His due rights? When you say: “Allah says”, he will just be looking at you as if you are the one saying it. If a person doesn’t know the Prophet صلى لله عليه وسلم in his true sense and his status in the deen of Islam, how would he be able to understand the sanctity of obeying him and giving him and his Sunnah due regard and honour. If you read hadith to him, he will just be arguing with his own ra’y (personal reasoning).

Many times, when we advise one another to go and learn ‘aqeedah, some people think one is claiming to have knowledge. That is a wrong thought. What we seek to achieve by that advice is sanity of thought and reasoning. Scholars who are upon Sunnah have agreed that one of the most stupid things to do is to argue the deen with people who lack sound understanding of taoheed. You will be saying A, they will be saying B. You will be quoting texts, they will be using personal thoughts. They will waste your time and energy. An average Muslim is expected know the divisions of taoheed and apply them in his activities. A Muslim must know and understand the role of the Companions رضي الله عنهم in the deen and give them due regard and respect. A Muslim must know all these matters with their daleel in the Qur’an and Sunnah, apply them all the time, teach them to other people, and be patient upon any hardship he faces in the course of doing this.

Let’s ask ourselves, how many Muslims know these things the way they should be known? A lot of people just bear Muslim by name and not by knowledge and application. So, the reason why it is often difficult for people to understand the sanctity of obeying the Messenger صلى الله عليه وسلم is that they don’t actually know who he really is. This is a strong matter of ‘aqeedah that we should first get into people’s head before any other thing. Someone is yet to understand the position of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم in Islam, and you are reading hadiths prohibiting protest against constituted authority to him, he will not understand. Someone is yet to understand taoheed, you are telling him about hadiths on cutting of hair moderately and evil of attaching false hairs, it will not enter. Even if it enters, the person might not know why he or she is accepting it. It is important to first teach people the basis upon which their obedience to Allah and His Messenger صلى الله عليه وسلم is built.

May Allah guide us aright.

Ibn Abdillah As-sudaisiy Al-Iloori
6th Jumaadal Uulaa, 1439AH

German Far-right politician converts to Islam, quits AfD party

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The AfD is one of the leading anti-refugee and anti-Muslim groups in Germany [Hannibal Hanschke/Reuters]
The AfD is one of the leading anti-refugee and anti-Muslim groups in Germany [Hannibal Hanschke/Reuters]

A leading politician from the Alternative for Germany (AfD) has converted to Islam and resigned from his position with the anti-Muslim party, the party has confirmed.

Arthur Wagner, a leading member of the far-right party in Germany‘s eastern German state of Brandenburg, stepped down for “personal reasons”, a party spokesperson confirmed, according to state broadcaster Deutsche Welle.

Wagner, who has been a member of the party since 2015, refused to comment to Tagesspiegel, the daily newspaper that first broke the news of his conversion.

“That’s my private business,” he told the daily.

On the party’s Brandenburg state committee, Wagner’s work focused on churches and faith communities, according to Deutsche Welle.

The AfD has campaigned against refugees and migrants and made history when it won 12.6 percent of the vote in federal elections in September 2017, entering the Bundestag for the first time.

The party became the third largest party in the Bundestag.

The news sparked derision on social media, with many Twitter users pointing to the irony of Wagner converting to Islam after being a high-ranking member of a party that has railed against the presence of Muslims in Germany.

Emily Dische-Becker said: “Creeping Sharia picks up speed as politician from Germany’s islamophobic AfD converts to Islam.”

Mark Berry said: “I really don’t understand Nazis.”

‘Islam is a foreign entity’

The AfD has long denied accusations that it is Islamophobic.

Originally founded in 2013 as a Eurosceptic party, the AfD took the lead as the most aggressive anti-refugee voice in the country while nearly a million asylum seekers arrived in Germany in 2015.

In the party’s first bill since its electoral success in September, the AfD proposed amending Germany’s Residence Act by barring refugees from bringing their relatives from the war-ravaged countries they fled.

Earlier this month, Beatrix von Storch, the deputy leader of the AfD’s parliamentary group, was blocked from Facebook and Twitter after publishing Islamophobic posts criticising police for posting Arabic-language updates on New Year’s Eve.

She had written: “What the hell is happening in this country? Why is an official police site tweeting in Arabic? Do you think it is to appease the barbaric, gang-raping hordes of Muslim men?”

The party has also sought to ban the construction of mosques in Germany.

In March 2016, the party’s Bavaria branch published a policy statement calling for an end to the “construction and operation” of mosques in the region, Deutsche Welle reported at the time.

In February of that year, then party leader Petry Frauke sparked outrage when she proclaimed that German border guards should “use fire arms if necessary” in order to prevent “illegal border crossings” by refugees and migrants.

In April 2016, the AfD’s Alexander Gauland proclaimed that Germany must remain “a Christian country” and “Islam is a foreign entity”.

The rise in anti-Muslim rhetoric has also coincided with a spike in violence against asylum seekers.

The German interior ministry documented 3,533 attacks on refugees and their accommodations – nearly 10 a day – in 2016.

SOURCE: AL JAZEERA NEWS

BETWEEN FIRDAUS AMASA AND AISHA FOLAMI, HOW NIGERIA MUSLIMS IMPROVED

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Amasa Firdaus

 

The “call to bar hijab saga” which happened a little over a month ago, and made every one; Christians and Muslims alike, a judge or in the least, a juror in a grand jury made up on the internet is surprisingly still alive.I still come across hashtags #Justiceforfirdaous, #IstandwithFirdaus, et cetera,  all over social media, some also still have her as their social media profile pictures and press releases are being churned out regularly. Most recent one from Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC), informing of the commencement of inquiry into the matter by the inquiry committee set up by the House of Reps.I must confess, it is the first of its kind. There have been several such cases of bias, intolerance, unnecessary show of hatred, assault and battery even, among others, been posted on the internet since time past, very recent ones including what “hijabites” face in NYSC camps across the country, especially in the Eastern states.

 

They never truly were fought to the pits by Nigerian Muslims, after a few days’ rant, one or two press releases from MURIC and other such Islamic bodies, the tide would die down and nothing would be said or heard of such again.Aisha O. FolamiOne most dear to my heart, which unfortunately Nigerian Muslims didn’t put enough effort to fight through and thoroughly, was the case of the “hijabite” broadcaster, Aisha Oloruntoyin Folami, who works in the Lagos Television (LTV) as a news anchor. I’d always enjoy seeing her beautiful and bright face while casting the news, until she was suddenly yanked from the position of a newscaster, only to be relegated within the newsroom. The full story was never brought to light, as people who knew exactly “what” could never really talk, as that could cost them their jobs. They’re civil servants and the interest of the government is paramount.I watched the news on NTA while growing up, and I’d always see a beautiful lady Fatimah Hassan in her scarf. It wasn’t a big deal to me then, in my little mind, being a Muslim, Christian or whatever faith you profess shouldn’t be, until I became this grown and got exposed to the bias and irregularities that has eaten deep into this nation in all its industries; private and public alike. It is no news that Muslims are being victimized, it is a statement of fact.

 

I wish Nigerian Muslims; concerned groups, Social Media Influencers, recognized Islamic bodies, etc. had actually done something beyond the usual “max” of two-three weeks rants and a protest. I wish we had stood our grounds and interfered in every available way. It is, after all, a government broadcasting station. It was indeed a huge blow on our faces, for we lost that even before the battle started. What is the use of wishes or perhaps, what do I know of the in-depth of matters such as this anyway? What I know is that we should never have let that matter die that way. She was like a representative of Islam in that regard, I know how glad I feel each time I watch Nymah Akashat Zibiri, on TVC’s “Your View”.I’ve witnessed Nigerian Muslims try countless time to vindicate Islam each time its haters set to work. That Islam is a religion of peace and tolerance shouldn’t be something too difficult to believe by any sane mind, as long as the Muslims complement that statement with righteous and peaceful characters at all times.Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allah upon him, was said to have won several hearts to embrace Islam simply by his righteous deeds, even before preaching the words of God to them. Now that is what Muslims should keep striving to achieve, even while demanding for our rights, and that in itself would liberate us all.I’m glad Firdaus’ case is still very much alive (I still get dragged into it almost on a daily basis as a matter of fact) whatever reason that could be, it is to be a glitter of hope, my wishes weren’t any good then but my hope could serve better. It is also a reassurance that we get better at what we do, driving our agitation and rights home to where it matters, standing our grounds regardless and fighting for a right that is a clear injunction from our Lord.Her case has further opened a can of worms that has always been slightly opened to an average practising Muslim lady in Nigeria, now is the time to dispose the worms and thrash the can.What surprises me greatly is how some, Christians especially, put it upon themselves to berate her.

 

To everyone; Muslims and Christians alike, who took it as a duty to insult, berate, judge or curse her, I’m sure you all are well rested by now, but it was never your fight, to begin with. Despite that I initially had my reservations about the whole issue, I couldn’t help but salute her courage, she truly is a heroine and a great model in that respect.Thank you, Firdaus Amasa Abdusalam, for fighting the battle for your predecessors and successors like us.May Allah bless our struggles and grant the Muslim ummah success against oppressors all over the world.Note, however, when I say Nigerian Muslims I mean the conscious ones – not the ones who tell you worship is limited to what’s solely in their hearts, while they do not exactly understand the language their hearts speak.

Written by: Mar’yam Thaoban ( NobleHeart)

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