Abdussalam made the call while delivering a lecture titled “The Third Parent: Surmounting the Negatives of Social and Electronic Media on Muslim Child’s Upbringing,” at the At-Tanzee Schools’ end-of-session Qur’anic and Arabic certification ceremony, held in the Ikorodu area of Lagos.
This was just as the guest lecturer also urged the students to listen to their parents and follow all their instructions, adding that Allah’s blessings was the reward for doing so.
The media professional noted that social media is interactive, connecting the profiles of different users, including faceless friends and even predators, which often result in blind dates and, therefore, makes control nearly impossible as children could “block your access to their accounts.”
He, therefore, implored parents to guard their children against the dangers of social media.
“The social mdia today is a product of man’s intelligence. In Islam, every invention you want to make is not only restricted to commercial propriety but its social impact.
“The social media is a two-edged sword. It can be used for what is good and what is bad,” he warned.
“Majority of you (parents) are not always within the reach of your children and available when they need you but your prayers may turn to curse if this continues,” he warned further.
Ustadh Abdussalam said Allah created man with what he termed three gifts, including free will and wisdom, saying that the third gift was a function of the usage of the first two, calling on parents and students to intelligently manipulate the free will.
“Almighty Allah created man with three gifts – free will, wisdom and the third gift is a function of the usage of the first two gifts. You parents and students should intelligently manipulate the free will,” he said.
and then