Parents charged to educate children on Islamic finance

MUSLIM parents have been implored to inculcate the virtues of Islamic finance in their children in order to uphold the anti-usury tenet of Islam.

This charge was given by participants at the Annual General Meeting of the Welfare Foundation of the Al-Ameen, Ishefun, Lagos State.

The outgoing chairman of the foundation, Alhaji Shakiru Adisa Saminu, noted that the non-interest foundation had helped to wean members from interest-based finance.

Saminu reiterated the need for members to encourage their working-class children to join the association so that they too would embrace the Islamic finance system.

He traced the formation of the foundation in 2010 to the concern of the founding members that the existing cooperative system was against the injunction of Allah who forbids usury.

The missioner of the foundation, Alhaji Tajudeen Oladoyin, quoting Qur’an 2 verse 279, said Allah declares war on those who engage in usury-based transactions.

“Allah declares war on those who are transacting business based on riba (usury). I don’t think any one of us can take on Allah. It is therefore imperative that we all do away with cooperative societies and other financial systems that are based on usury,” Oladoyin stated.

The Islamic finance-based organisation has grown from less than 10 members at inception to more than 100 presently.

At the AGM, services offered by the foundation were listed to include thrift and credit scheme, welfare scheme, target savings scheme, granting of loans to deserving members, establishment of a co-educational school, purchase of items for members and donation to institutions and indigent Muslim students of higher institutions.

The meeting also witnessed the passing of baton to a new set of officers led by Mr Hammed Adegoke, who takes over from Alhaji Saminu as the chairman.