The Governor of Kwara State, Mallam Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq has called for concerted efforts of all the religious groups in the country to accelerate national growth and development.
Governor Abdulrazaq made the call on Saturday while declaring open the 79th National Islamic Vacation Course (IVC), organised by Muslim Students’ Society of the Nigeria (MSSN).
This year annual event with the theme ‘The New Dawn: MSSN on Call’, is being held in Ilorin, the Kwara State, between 22nd and 28th December, 2022.
His Excellency urged participants to interact and deliberate on ways to utilise their gathering to enhance national unity, promote healthy debate on diversity and National development.
“I want to implore you all to sustain the teachings and tenets of the religion for peaceful coexistence with people of other faiths. One of the greatest legacies of our Noble Prophet Muhammad is the good conduct and impeccable relationship amongst the people of other religions”, he said.
Governor Abdulrazaq re-emphasized the need to collectively address the decadence and near collapse of morality among the nation’s children.
He noted that the rate at which young people get involved in various social vices is alarming, saying substance abuse, drop in commitment to collective good and misuse of the social media are issues that must engage attention.
His Excellency said further that as a country, we must be vigilant on security issues, including banditry and abduction for ransom.
The Royal Father of the day and Emir of Ilorin, Alhaji (Dr.) Ibrahim Sulu-Gambari welcomed participants to the State of Harmony and urged them to put in their best to have a successful camping.
The Emir, who was represented by the Balogun Gambari, Alhaji Aliyu Adebayo urged participants to make good use of the knowledge gained at the vocation course to develop themselves and for the benefits of the society at large.
His Royal Highness, however, commended all those that contributed to the successes recorded on the commencement of the programme, even as he prayed for their peaceful stay in Kwara State.
Earlier, in his address, the Chairman, Council of Hosting Fathers and Mentors, Justice Idris Abdullahi Haroon, OFR called on parents and guardians to encourage their wards to play active roles in the MSSN branch of their respective schools towards disseminating and imbibing values and lessons learnt from such fora.
Justice Haroon stated that over the years, MSSN’s IVCs has undoubtedly provided opportunities through various lectures, mentoring and well guided training that have usually been structured to hold during the vacation course.
“As a student of Islam and trainer of trainers, I align wholeheartedly with the rationales for creating opportunities for bringing our children and future leaders of our society together in fora like this”, he said.
While thanking His Royal Highness, the Emir of Ilorin, Alhaji (Dr.) Ibrahim Sulu-Gambari for considering him and his team worthy of the assignment, Justice Haroon stated that their Committee had been responsible for coordinating the various bodies involved in the planning for a successful IVC and specifically raising fund to accomplish the needs of over 4,000 participants that are expected to attend the IVC.
In his address, the National Amir, MSSN, Mall. Shehu Uthman Abubakar, said that apart from the general state of Nigeria as a nation, the MSSN being more of a youth organization, focused on the matters that affect the religion and the youth who are greatest assets and potentially the greatest investment or the development and reconstruction of any nation which is as well positively correlated with the extent of the vitality, responsible conduct and roles of the youth in the Society.
“In Nigeria today, more than 70% of the 217,079,601 populations which amount to 151 million people are the youth from different tribes, cultures, ethnicity, language, traditions and most importantly religions. Yet, the youth are at the receiving end in the current state of the nation.
“Despite the fact that Nigeria is endowed with abundance of natural resources that could make it the best and the greatest among the leading nations in the world. Yet our noble country, Nigeria is compounded with several instances of unrest, ranging from Boko haram insurgency, insecurity that trends in different forms, dimension and manifestations unemployment and redundancy among youth of productive age, high rate of criminal activities such as kidnapping, Banditry, Armed Robbery, assassination and ethno-religious disharmony among others all of which affects the youth greatly more than any other class of people in the country”, he said.
Abubakar noted that the Muslim MSSN, is concerned more about the devastating setback caused by academic insecurity ranging from; lack of modern teaching aids and facilities that could enhance the educational growth and development in our various institutions of learning.
He said further that poor salary scale for the teachers at the primary and post primary institutions in the country, the incessant ASSU strike and lack of promptness in taking expert action to address the situation from both the States and the Federal governments, which left the students roaming about, jobless and hopelessly, while some were loss to kidnapping and banditry among other anti-social vices adding to the nations’ state of insecurity.
He therefore call upon the youth to participate in the coming 2023 general election actively but wisely in order to salvage our beloved country that is at the verge of disintegration, while we remain patriotic law abiding and visionary in order to take-over the leadership of this country in the nearest.
“The Muslim Students’ Society of Nigeria MSSN, on the other hand have possessed every political strength and structure to make difference in the country’s democratic election now and ever. The Society possess about 6 million member across the 36 states of the federation with 236 Area Councils each equivalent to 2 or more local government areas. The society has a total of 111 Central branches each institutions and 17,097 post primary institutions which make the society to have a total of 20,700 branches across the country”, he added.
Speaking, the ‘A’ Zone Chairman, 19 Northern State and Abuja, Mallam Muhammed Bin Isa said that today is another dawn on every Muslim across the globe. This is a new sun shining on the heads of believers. Yesterday was a history of those who fought the war and won. Today is the news of descendants eating the fruits of the heroes’ labour.
“However the bad outmarts the right; violence overshadows peace; ignorance challenges knowledge; nothing shall weaken the strength of Muslim Students’ Society of Nigeria in disseminating the right message to the Ummah. This is what we have inherited and nothing shall jeopardize that interest.
“Our journey this year in this noble city of the state of harmony has a remarkable significance in the history of MSSN. Kwara is North and the North is Kwara State. Kwara State MSSN remains one of the most committed wings of the society from the National to the Zonal level. Like Abubakar and Umar to the Prophet, peace be upon him, Kwara enters every wide and close holes of jihad with MSSN, irrespective of the challenges.
“Historically, llorin was the first National headquarters of MSSN. The 32-plot parcel of land acquired by MSSN in 1974 reminds the Umnmah of the strenuous efforts asserted by the leadership of MSSN in llorin. Without Ilorin, the history of the society is incomplete. Bringing in National IVC to Kwara State is really a new dawn”, he added.
In his address, the Amir MSSN, Kwara State Area Unit, Mall. Abdulrahman AbdulAbdulmumin, welcomed participants to the formal opening ceremony of the 79th National Islamic Vacation Course (IVC) of the Muslim Students’ Society of Nigeria, the event which he said is unique because of the circumstances surrounding it.
“It is a programme to formally declare open the most extensive programme of the MSSN, which is universally regarded as Muslim Students’ Haj.
“The IVC has earned the name from its nature of enjoying not less than four thousand (4000) participants from the 19 Northern States and FCT to train and teach Islamic values to Muslim students.
“The event is also unique because it is indeed the birth of several positive developments in the history of the Muslim Students’ Society of Nigeria, Kwara State Area Unit. This is because the Area Unit has never hosted a National programme of this sort, and here it is unfolding before our eyes”, AbdulAbdulmumin said.
He however expressed gratitude to his Excellency, the Governor of Kwara State, Mall Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq; the Emir of Ilorin, Alh. Ibrahim Sulu-Gambari; Justice Idris Abdullahi Haroon, Dr. Olayiwola Ayinla, the chairman local organizing Committee and other stakeholders for their supports in ramifications towards the success of the programme.
Other highlights of the occasion are: Recitation from the Holy Qur’an, launching MSSN newsletter ‘MAZONE’, Awards and Honours to distinguished fathers and mothers, presentation of awards to the 2022 winners of Quiz and Essay competition and fund raising for the development of the society among others.