Kano To Establish Religious Affairs Ministry

Kano state Governor, Abdullahi Umar Ganduje on Sunday reveals plan to establish ministry for religious affairs to effectively address issues bordering on Islamic practices and injunctions.

Explaining that, proper utilisation and distribution of Zakkat, effective management of other Islamic agencies like Hisbah Board, Zakkat and Khubsi Commission, Shariah Commission and others would be treated most effectively and efficiently,

The proposed ministry, would among other things, serve as a bridge between people of different tribes and religious beliefs, with the view to cementing relationships between people for more peaceful and prosperous society.

Chief Press Secretary to Kano state Governor, Abba Anwar  in a statement said Ganduje hinted this during a special prayer session for peace and security of the state and the nation in general, held at Africa House, Government House, Kano.

It said issues of marriages would also be part of the concern of the new ministry. “As the preponderance of broken homes is a serious concern with our government. Which must be tackled head on. We must have strategy in place that is in compliance with Islamic injunctions, to try and put significant change on the prevalence of broken homes,” he reveals.

According to the statement  ” Ganduje said it times without number, that we must bring sanity into the management and operations of Kano State Hisbah Board. With this new ministry of religious affairs, Hisbah Board will be put for better performance.”

Issues surrounding welfare of Imams and management of Islamiyyah schools in the state, according to the governor, would be treated with all sense of responsibility and dedication. “Our Imams should be carried along for proper guidance of the citizenry,” he explains.

He lists, training and re-training of Imams to allow for proper and committed guidance to the members of the public, as one of the fundamental areas of concern with the new ministry.

The statement said street begging is one of the issues that the new ministry, would, after take-off, treat as one of its fundamental areas of concern, insisting that “We should come up with new strategies to take care of how we treat our children, in an Islamic way, while sending them to Qura’anic schools to study the Holy Qur’an.”

Clerics from all Islamic sects, Tijjaniyya, Qadiriyyah and Izala sects, attended the special prayer session. They offered individual prayers after the general prayer session by Imams, Association of Qur’anic Reciters and other community leaders.

Sayyid Muhammad Bashir represented Tijjaniyya sect, Sheikh Sammani Makwarari  represented Qadiriyyah sect and Dr Abdullahi Saleh Pakistan was there on behalf of Izala sect.

The prayer session was attended by 200 male scholars and 100 female scholars, all at different locations at the Government House.