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Rep Bichi to Commission 3,000-Capacity Juma’at Mosque Named After Late Sheikh Gumi

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Muslim faithful from the nooks and crannies of Kano and beyond will today converge on Bichi town of Bichi Local Government Area of the state for the official commissioning of a 3,000-capacity modern Juma’at Mosque and an Islamiyyah school built by Hon. Abubakar Kal Abubakar, member representing Bichi Federal Constituency at the House of Representatives.

The Juma’at Mosque located along Gwarzo road in Bichi was named after the renowned Islamic scholar and Jurist, late Sheikh Abubakar Mahmood Gumi. The event, which is scheduled to take place between 11am-1pm, will have the National Chairman of the Jama’at Izalatul Bid’ah Wa Iqamatis Sunnah, Sheikh Abdullahi Bala Lau, as a special guest of honor.

The Abubakar Mahmood Gumi Juma’at Mosque was constructed alongside an Islamiyyah school and toilets within its premises, as part of efforts to boost Islamic education in the community. Four new modern Juma’at mosques are being constructed by the lawmaker in four different communities of Bichi Local Government Area of Kano State..

Hon. Bichi is also constructing an e-library in Bichi, even as he built several roads across the constituency in addition to sponsoring hundreds of students to further their studies in various universities within and outside the country. For instance, he sponsored 21 indigenes of Bichi to Malaysia for their postgraduate studies.

 

Rep Kabir Abubakar Bichi

Rep Kabir Abubakar Bichi

The multi-billion naira project is part of the lawmaker’s efforts to give back to his constituents. He has built several schools, including Islamiyyah schools, roads, healthcare facilities, and culverts, among other projects geared towards improving the well-being of his constituents.

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A resident of Bichi, Malam Ibrahim Yusuf, described the gesture as huge and timely, saying, “Hon. Bichi has done everything for his constituents. He has built several roads, healthcare facilities, a library, schools, and now a modern Juma’at mosque with an Islamiyyah school. The man has also secured jobs for many people in this local government. So, I think he has done everything for us. We are indebted because he has done his part; the ball is now in our court to pay him back during the election. He has spent so much improving our well-being in different ways. I am overwhelmed by his generosity. Any time he is approached with a problem, Hon. Bichi will do his best to help in addressing it.”

Another resident, Muhammad Musa, said he was short of words to thank Hon. Bichi for all the gestures he did for the people of Bichi in particular and Kano State in general, noting that “A representative that will spend such a huge amount of money to improve the well-being of his constituents deserves commendation. This is not the first time he is assisting his people. Currently, Hon. Bichi is constructing new Juma’at mosques in various communities in Bichi Local Government.

“This is in addition to other projects he has executed across Bichi Local Government. This single project has greatly solved our problem. You know, Bichi is one of the fastest-growing towns in Kano, and we need such modern mosques around us. With our growing population, we need five of such mosques in the town, and we thank God that Hon. Bichi has constructed three so far. Only God knows what will happen in the next few years with Hon. Bichi as our representative at the National Assembly. So far, he has resolved more than half of our problems regarding decongesting our Juma’at mosques within Bichi town, and we thank him for the gesture.”

On his part, Ustaz Amani Ibrahim Bichi described the gesture as a step towards promoting Islamic Dawah within Bichi town, noting that as a modern Juma’at mosque, the place would be a center of learning, especially for young people interested in acquiring Islamic knowledge. “I am sure the Jama’at Izalatul Bid’ah Wa Iqamatis Sunnah will make the mosque a center of preaching by organizing lessons for the younger generation.”

A member of the Jama’at Izalatul Bid’ah Wa Iqamatis Sunnah, who doesn’t want his name in print because he is not in a position to speak for the association, said, “Though I am not an official of the JIBWIS to comment on its behalf, as a member of the association, I feel delighted with what Hon. Bichi has done for us. Apart from constructing the mosque, the edifice was named after our scholar, late Sheikh Abubakar Mahmood Gumi. This is something I cherish. I am sure the JIBWIS will forever remain grateful to Hon. Bichi for this single gesture.

“My appeal to the people of Bichi, especially the youth, is to devote their time to acquiring knowledge when such lessons for Islamic knowledge commence at the Juma’at mosque. This is a golden opportunity for the youth to educate themselves through various Islamic activities that are going to take place at the mosque. We must utilize the opportunity to brighten our future. For Bichi, we thank him very much for the gesture. This is something we will never forget because any man that helps you to shape your life through acquiring knowledge deserves commendation.”

Another member of the Jama’at Izalatul Bid’ah Wa Iqamatis Sunnah, who doesn’t want his name in print, said, “Though I am not an official of the JIBWIS to comment on its behalf, as a member of the association, I feel delighted with what Hon. Bichi has done for us. Apart from constructing the mosque, the edifice was named after our scholar, the late Sheikh Abubakar Mahmood Gumi. This is something I cherish much. I am sure the JIBWIS will forever remain grateful to Hon. Bichi for this singular gesture. Immortalizing the late Abubakar Gumi alone is something worthy of commendation, and we thank Hon. Bichi for remembering our great scholar. The entire members of the JIBWIS within and outside Bichi are happy with this development and will forever remain grateful to the lawmaker.

“I hope and pray that other lawmakers will borrow a leaf from Hon. Bichi to initiate similar projects in their respective constituencies with a view to improving the well-being of the constituents. At least, Hon. Bichi has set an example of good representation for others to emulate. You are free to conduct a sampling survey to hear what his constituents are saying about his representation. He has done a lot for his constituents since he was elected as representative of Bichi Federal Constituency. This is what the electorate are looking forward to from their representatives at both state and federal levels. Hon. Bichi’s representation has paid off, and we are thankful to him for remembering his constituents when they needed his support.”

Though Hon. Bichi could not be reached for comment, one of his aides, Abubakar Aminu, however, said the gesture was a sign of appreciating the people of Bichi Federal Constituency, as according to him, “the people of Bichi stood behind Hon. Bichi during the election, and so it is time for him to pay them back. The gesture is nothing new from Hon. Bichi because he is always willing to do the bidding of his people, and this is one of the things they demanded from him.

“The man has a lot of projects to execute for his people, and he is committed towards achieving his goals because so far he has executed some of the projects he planned for his people, including this edifice of a modern Juma’at mosque. We thank God Almighty for giving Hon. Bichi the wisdom and courage to fulfill some of his campaign promises.”

 

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Sallah Durbar: Cancellation spikes security scare as businesses suffered setback in Kano.

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Unquantifiable economic lose were recorded in Kano over the weekend following the sudden cancellation of the historical Salah Durbar festival.

Although, the Sallah celebration was conducted largely peaceful even after the ban on Durbar, but the security alert invoked by the police had scared visitors and potential investors.

The UNESCO certified global event left about 160 foreign tourists who had flew into Kano stranded after the sudden imposition of ban on the traditional heritage, Kano State History, Culture and Tourism Bureau, confirmed.

Kano Durbar, the largest convergence of horse rides globally dated back over 500 years, attracted international recognition thereby making the UNESCO representative list of intangible cultural heritage of humanity in December 2024.

An entrepreneur, Ahmad Sarki Norma who lamented the economic lost in Kano at the weekend as a result of cancellation of Durbar worried over the overbearing influence and interest on Kano emirate.

According to Sarki Norma, besides the wreckage of profit on micro economic, the livelihood of local artisans who specialize on weaving, and fabrication of horse artifacts and horsemen costumes during Salah Durbar season have been crippled.

” I know that virtually all the costumes we wear during Durbar are 90% handmade. That means, the event usually stimulates huge business activities and opportunities for the local fabricators. So when you cancel the Durbar you are killing and sending them out of business.

” Secondly, when you look into sales of pure water on those five days it’s not an ordinary economy. People come from the villages with 5,000 naira to sell bottle water and beverages and make a lots of profits.

On traditional wears, Sarki Norma said ” a normal traditional toberida, costs at least N150,000, which is almost $80. And you’re expected to wear four of it to the right. And also the horse dress, you can get a horse dress of N4 million, you can get a horse dress of N30,000.

“I can calmly say I spend nothing less than Never2.5 million for these four rides on my own. But when you come to the horse, I have a $10 million horse, I have a $20,000 horse, which are specifically meant for just riding”.

Also speaking on the economic impact, Ahmad Abba Yusuf, Executive Secretary, History and Culture Bureau, Kano, said transport, tourism, and food industries recorded the highest lost in the wake of the Durbar cancellation.

Yusuf equally ascerted that several billions of naira have been lost in the tourism sector including the production and marketing of local materials for the horses and horsemen.

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“We do have over 74 traditional title holders that come in a cluster, in groups. So each group contains a minimum of 20 horse riders. So if you can multiply that, if you can be able to deduce the amount of materials for the horses and horsemen, this will be the cost for the Darbar.

“And other local economy, those are the indirect costs attached to it. The people, small-scale traders selling foods, drinks, and other consumables during the Darbar festivities. And also the transport and hospitality accommodation for the tourists and other local royal guests during the Darbar”. Yusuf noted.

Sharing experiences during a media interaction Kano, a tourists in Kano on Thursday, a tourist Virgil Taylor who came from United States of America expressed deep disappointment that his hope to watch the historical durbar was dash.

Taylor who is visiting Kano and Nigeria for the first time to relish the beautiful African culture, worried that after a whole year preparation for the long trip to Africa, he only got to know about the cancellation after arriving Kano.

Taylor, though believed every disappointment is for a purpose, he was delighted to have catched the glimpse of the Emir Muhammadu Sanusi II in a large population during Sallah Day, which he said remain a memorable historical opportunity for him.

“I started planning for this trip over a year ago when I was in Ghana and so I kept doing my research and I understood that there were Durbar that occurred else where throughout Nigeria, but in particular Kano.

“So I started making my preparations and I actually flew in last Friday, I think that was the 27th of March or 28th. I arrived. And until then I learned that the Durbar is not happening again. I had no idea that it had been cancelled before then.

“So yeah, I was disappointed, but I was assured that it would still be a good trip for me and it has been, it’s been extraordinary. The people of Kano have been just very wonderful”. Taylor said.

Another Tourist, a UK based, Lekan Yushau Okanlawon who also flew from London for the Durbar regretted how the cancellation crippled his plans to register the festival on the Guniess book of record for a largest horse proccession in the world besides the UNESCO’s recognition.

Also narrating disappointment, Okanlawon narrated how he had invited friends who are polo players in the UK to join the Durbar procession essentially to witness for the first time, a convergence of over 5,000 horses riding behind a single person.

“So when on the 6th of December, 2024 that UNESCO certified the Kano Durbar and incorporated it into their global heritage program, many of us were happy and we have something internationally recognized to show to our friends abroad.

” So I started discussion with a couple of my friends who have polo teams in the UK. By the way, I came in on the 23rd into Lagos and I flew into Kano on the 24th. I didn’t get to know the Durbar was cancelled until I got there. So I had to quickly send an SOS message to my friends. They don’t have to come again.

“Many of them wanted to come because the only horse riding experience many of them had prior to now has been riding horse for a bit of leisure and more polo. So they have never ride a horse in a long procession.

“So my target with a couple of other friends in Kano and outside Kano that were working together is to ensure that in the next one year we put Kano Durbar procession on the Guinness World Record because Kano has the largest gathering of horse gathering in the world”. Okanlawon added.

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Tinubu’s Political Adviser, Hakeem Baba-Ahmed Resigns

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Dr Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, the political adviser to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has resigned, it was reliably learnt.

Impeccable sources in the presidency confirmed yesterday that the former spokesman of the Northern Elders Forum (NEF) tendered his resignation about two weeks ago.

The sources said Dr. Baba-Ahmed did not provide details of the reasons for his decision, only stating that it was on personal grounds. However, as of the time of filing this report, it was unclear whether the presidency had accepted his resignation.

Baba-Ahmed was appointed Special Adviser on Political Matters in the Office of Vice President Kashim Shettima in September 2023.

 

Daily Trust

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Islamic Scholar Dr Abdul Aziz Dutsen Tanshi Is Dead

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A prominent Islamic cleric, Imam Dr. Idris Abdul’aziz Dutsen Tanshi, has passed away.

Sheikh Muhammad Kabir Haruna confirmed his death on his verified Facebook account late on Thursday night.

Late Imam Dutsen Tanshi was a leading Islamic scholar in Africa, widely recognized for his contributions to disseminating Islamic teachings across the continent.

In addition to his scholarly work, Imam Idris was also a businessman and farmer.

He had been contending with ill health for some time, and recently traveled abroad for medical treatment during the last Ramadan.

His funeral will be held at 10:00 a.m. on Friday at the Eid Mosque in Games Village, Bauchi state.

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