HIJAB is not only the identity of Muslim women, it is being worn in obedience to Allah’s command as established in Qur’an 33:59.
Wife of former vice president, Dr Amina Namadi Sambo, stated this recently while speaking virtually at a Hijab Day lecture organised by the Coalition of Nigeria Muslim Women at the Conference Hall of the National Mosque, Abuja.
Sambo cautioned women against revealing their awrah (the intimate part of the human body), saying it constitutes the whole of a Muslim lady’s body except the face and wrist.
The gathering was the climax of a week-long activity the group used to educate and enlighten Muslim and non-Muslim women to the importance of Hijab to the Islamic faith.
Sambo described Hijab as an inseparable companion of the Muslim woman, urging them to wear it with pride and faith so as to protect their dignity and earn Allah’s reward.
The founder of the non-governmental organisation, I Care–Women and Youth Initiative, commended the consistency of the Coalition of Nigeria Muslim Women in marking the World Hijab Day every year.
She said: “I am most enthused with the series of activities lined up this year; from the press conference on the actual day on Tuesday, February 1st, to awareness outing yesterday, Saturday, February 5, and this lecture today, Sunday, February 6. This shows commitment and determination to make our voices heard, our persons seen and our knowledge enriched.”
Despite the global attack on Hijab, Sambo said she was pleased to note that Muslim women were more determined to sensitise and promote the Islamic identity and culture without being intimidated.
“It is true that very few others, who do not represent Islam have used the Hijab to perpetrate evil but that should not be used to stereotype Muslim women and also not deter us from obeying Allah SWT,” she noted.
She called on the participants, particularly young Muslim women who are faced with peer pressure not to be influenced by the “so-called modernisation,” adding: “Some modes of dressing in the name of fashion are indecent and immoral. They are in direct conflict with our religion, just as the Prophet of Islam (SAW) cautioned in different hadiths.”
The event, with the theme, ‘Hijab is our Crown, not our Crime’, was attended by prominent Muslim personalities in Nigeria such as the Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu, represented by Hajiya Sidikat Shomope of the Social Mobilisation Department, Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) and Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Electoral Matters, Aisha Duku.
Others were the director of the Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC), Professor Ishaq Lakin Akintola; Deputy Vice Chancellor, Administration, Nasarawa State University, Keffi, Hajiya Maryam Bukar Abba; Professor Saadatu Hassan Liman, Professor Rafatu Abdulhamid of the University of Abuja and the National Ameerah of the Federation of Muslim Women’s Associations in Nigeria (FOMWAN), Hajiya Rofiah Idowu Sanni.
The MURIC director, Professor Akintola, who spoke on ‘The Hijab as a Metaphor of Our National Aspiration’, noted that it is the responsibility of everyone, especially government at all levels, to ensure that the right of all female Muslims to adorn hijab in public is protected.
In his presentation, the Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu, disclosed that the Nigerian constitution allows Muslim women to wear hijab in line with the teachings of their faith.
He noted that all citizens are allowed to practise their religions as long as no harm or inconvenience is caused to other people.
Adamu said it was unfortunate that the controversy over the wearing of hijab in the country had gone down to the school level and generated needless clashes.
The minister said: “The wearing of hijab by Muslim women is a Sunna as recommended in the Holy Qur’an (Q 33 V 59).”
According to him, there is a lot the country can gain by dialoguing on matters of religious differences rather than resorting to violence.
“Our children will remain citizens of Nigeria irrespective of their faith. They will live and interact in the world outside school where no boundary exists between the religions.
“We should understand that the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria guarantees freedom of religion to all citizens. This, by implication, means that all citizens are allowed to practice their religions according to the teachings of their faith as long as no harm or inconvenience is caused to other people.”
He appealed to all traditional, religions and community leaders to use their offices to douse tension so that Nigerians could all live in peace, harmony and tolerance.
Adamu also called on parents and school teachers “to ensure that in both words and actions, they present the best model to our children to emulate.”
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