₦airaland Forum

The foundation of every state is the education of its youth ~ Diogenes (412-323BC)

PREAMBLE

In 2011, Africa’s first Nobel Laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka described Nigeria’s educational system as a colossal failure and called for the declaration of a state of emergency in the sector. At a later date, he in fact went on to propose a shutdown of all tertiary institutions for two years to enable the adequate tackling of the ‘inherent rot’. Though a revolutionary, Professor Soyinka is not alone in his observation. His voice might have been loudest but he clearly spoke the minds of every Nigerian who has tasted from the bitter-kola of our schools. He spoke the minds of the millions who are out of school, the millions who are in school and the many more who constitute the country’s 59.6% illiterate population.

It is not within the province of doubt that the Nigerian education system is nothing to write home about. As I once heard a university Professor observe, our universities are worse, infrastructure-wise, than some high schools in South Africa. Many graduates leave the system not better than prior to their admission, some even worse. Our children constantly troop en masse beyond the Atlantic in search of Ivy League citadels while the population of foreign students in local campuses is like that of mankind on Mars. No wonder everyone who has enough money and who is in his right senses will not waste time in getting his children abroad away from the tragedy in our academes. Even President Muhammadu Buhari is unrelenting in giving his children the best education, a thing which is to Nigeria a far cry.

Our education system is deeply stuck in the stagnant waters of mechanistic theorisation. We have engineers who do not move near engines, doctors who technically know no better than conductors and Professors of Mechanical Engineering who still take their engines to Mechanics for engineering. Students learn under the worst of conditions – under trees, on the bare floor, in the rain and sun. The afflictions of the sector are so tragic that they emit tears and so plentiful that if the Niger River turned to ink, it may not aptly capture them. In short, quantitatively and qualitatively, the ‘Giant of Africa’ is still lurking in academic doldrums.

If thus are the priests, it is said, God bless the congregation. Likewise, if the best is not good enough, I say God bless the average entities. And so University of Ibadan, which prides itself as the first and which severally (and most recently by the NUC) has been ranked the best in Nigeria, is the fairest measure of the sector’s performance. Besides, would it not be most inequitable to judge the United States by its ghettoes and the Federal Republic of Nigeria by the Aso Rock? So, what does the adjudged best in our system say about the entire system? How well has the university represented the giANT nation? Is it truly primus inter pares or is its premier status akin a snail in the midst of the horned animals of the world?

A LITTLE BIT OF HISTORY

University of Ibadan was established as far back as 1948 by a wave of the British imperialist’s magic wand. It was the best thing to happen to that generation of youth. They had the good fortune of furthering their studies, getting intellectually empowered and basically learning in Britain while not leaving their fatherland. This generation eventually gave birth to the like of Chinua Achebe, Professor Wole Soyinka, John Pepper Clark, Chukwuemeka Ike, Professor Emeritus Jacob Ade Ajayi among others. To sum up, University of Ibadan at the outset was characterised by such qualities as high-calibre members of staff, a rich socio-academic culture, high standard physical and pedagogical facilities and a manageable teacher-student ratio…
In the first republic after independence, student intake started increasing but new halls of residence (designed to accommodate two persons per room) were built. Also, international academic links were struck up with institutions such as the Ford, Rockefeller, and Nuffield foundations which funded programmes, facilities and facilitated staff development. At this period too, primacy was given to staff growth as academics were polished through attendance at conferences, research and travel grants, and sabbatical leave attachment with internationally-acclaimed centres of excellence. But then, the autonomy of the institution was under risk through a steady pollicisation of its governing council.

The real tragedy struck first during the civil war between 1967 and 1970. The war had led to an exodus of foreign nationals and academic staff of Igbo origin (including Kenneth Dike, the then Vice Chancellor) due to security threat. In the same vein, importation of books and other resources was almost impossible, while government funding dwindled due to the militaristic pursuit of one Nigeria.

After the war, the quality and esteem of the school took a really sharp dive into murky waters. Experienced staff left the university for greener pastures available in newly established tertiary institutions such as University of Ife, Ahmadu Bello University, University of Nigeria, University of Benin among others. Also, as the government then had much more mouths to feed, subvention from government reduced even further. In addition, Marxist-oriented lecturers were sacked in 1978 thus reducing radical scholarship and profound intellectual discourse.

In the second republic, more expert hands were lost to government encouraged and mushrooming private universities. Also, the university continued to expand through the creation of three new faculties (law, technology and pharmacy) and more departments. This, without doubt, greatly overstretched already taut resources.

Equally worthy of note is that in the second era of military rule, state interference got elevated to the top floor, haphazard funding became the order of the day and academic fermentation became history. According to Materu, Obanya, and Righetti, “this period thus ended with Ibadan drained of its senior academics, its facilities depleted, its flawed policies still yielding large student numbers and a bourgeoning administrative structure, its subvention from government barely covering only staff salaries, its external links severed, and its research output in deep decline.”

PRESENT-DAY UNIVERSITY OF IBADAN

16 years after democratic rule, it is unfortunate that the brain drain has still not been reversed. 16 years after democratic rule, our facilities are still in a state of disrepair. 16 years after, University of Ibadan and her sister-institutions are still racking their wits in working out unequal equations of subventions and remunerations. I wonder if things are not in fact worse off now than they were under the jackboots.

Today, the university is ranked 14th in Africa (2016 Times Higher Education World University Rankings) and between 601 and 800 in the world (same source). According to Webometrics in 2016 however, the university is sitting comfortably at number 1296 in the world (at least a great leap from position 2310 of the previous year). I’m sure drawing comparisons with other African universities will only end up breaking someone’s heart, but of course Ghanaian, South African and Egyptian citadels are performing better. Today, the university is indeed struggling for breath. Perhaps only its nostrils are still above sea level; that is if it is not even depending on a snorkel to survive. Lack of adequate funding seems to be at the root-cause of our misfortune. And the federal government which is always eager to lay claim of ownership upon federal universities is looking the other way.

In a Special Release dated 5th of April 2016, the university lamented what it called ‘inadequate funding of personnel cost by the federal government’. In it, it was revealed that between December 2015 and March 2016, there existed a shortfall of approximately ₦599 Million between personnel grant from government and the gross pay. I wonder whence the university is expected to get enough to bridge this berth. And of course, other expenses are hanging around too like the Sword of Damocles. On electricity alone, an average of ₦28 million is spent on a monthly basis.

To further illustrate the extent of the mess we are in, on the 12th of May 2016, the University Registrar announced that hard copies of the University Bulletin will no longer be produced “owing to paucity of funds and in order to save cost.” Students can bear witness to the unbefitting pool of capitalism which the school has been plunged into out of desperation. It is producing water (both sachet and bottled), bread (both sliced and otherwise). We also have the hotel, fishery, bookshop, radio station, bookshop, zoo and so on. One would think we are speaking of Dangote’s largest competitor.

But then, money is not the only thing quarrelling with the university, resources generally too – from bed space to lecture rooms, from laboratory apparatuses to current library materials, from standard toilet facilities to such basic things as light and water. Rooms originally built for two persons are now serving as refuge for three, four, five persons or even more. And then certain lectures have also been beheld to be held under very disgraceful conditions – under the sun, on rusty furniture or with half of the class standing. It is befuddling that, despite these eyesores, the school keeps admitting more and more students every year. While 2,839 students were admitted in 2012, this figure jumped to 4,008 this year.

The saddest part is that though the government had not been willing to sacrifice to ameliorate these aberrancies, it still had the temerity to impose a ‘no tuition’ order and a limit for accommodation levies. Just like an irresponsible parent who provides very little sustenance for his kid at home, yet he warns him against receiving gifts from strangers or undertaking menial labour. Very wise, is it not?

FINALLY, RECOMMENDATIONS

As much as we must ask whence the problem comes and where the blame resides, we must not lose focus of what really matters: the rescue of our Pierian Spring, the sustenance of the Nile River of our existence. Let nobody reckon that only some set of persons are the culprits. We are all culprits! From the government which financially suffocates the sector, to the management which is poor at managing mint and men; from the parents who are so outrageously varsiti-centric to the students themselves who have lost their voice in the cave of greed and frivolity.

The government needs to step up its support for the university (and I do not just mean UI). Business is no business of a school. If it engages in it, it should not be for the sake of profit but for the promotion of knowledge. Needed funds should therefore be made available as no amount is too much to sacrifice for the education of a nation’s youth. The money can be made available directly, through an independent body (like the Education Trust Fund) or through a joint committee of government and university staff. Whichever method is adopted, transparency and adequate monitoring must be ensured.

It is a good thing that the government has decided to give out grants to students of the university and youth generally, but they should be reminded that our problems stretch beyond the lack of pocket money. We equally require a conducive learning environment and world-standard equipment in order to function as expected. The university motto says, recte sapere fons (to think straight is the fount of knowledge). And thinking straight, of course, is an impossible feat under agonising conditions.

Asides fixing and creating new facilities, breathing life into fallow resources is also paramount. There are magic boards and air conditioners in some lecture theatres but they serve only decorative purposes. There is a top-notch vocational centre in one hall but it has been long abandoned due to administrative indolence. There is an e-library in one faculty generously placed there by a humanitarian but they say the management is unwilling to purchase a generator to run it because even lecturers’ offices lack stable electricity. Stories abound too of rooms built by NLNG but put under lock because no one would operate them. All this should be critically looked into, and lecturers should be adequately trained on the use of modern educational facilities.

The alumni also have a very key role to play. Do not be like that bird which was nourished for months by its mother and which grew able wings under her care only to take off into yonder and never look back. Do not wait for some hyperactive Hall Chairman to seek you out. Come back and let your successors enjoy what you did, or even better. There are always things you can do, abnormalities you can fix, projects you can fund and indigent students you may well encourage. You never can tell how the good deed will rebound but it certainly will.

There are signals that the federal government in this dispensation is more concerned about the Ivory Tower than older regimes. This is good, but not enough. It starts there yes, but definitely does not end there. If the Minister of Education, like his predecessor, has his probity in doubt or his name mentioned close to one scandalous ‘gate’ or the other, then it will end there. If the comrades in the Nigeria Labour Congress and similar trade unions are more concerned about their gains than they are about the trade itself, it will end there. If the administrators on campus take advantage of their autonomy and halo of integrity to move in financial roundabouts and perform monetary voodoo, it will most certainly end there.

Even our student leaders and self-acclaimed a luta warriors have a huge role to play. More often than not, in fact too often, we hear of disconcerting cases of misappropriation among students. We have seen so-called youth leaders fight over a two million Naira ‘gift’ from Governor Abiola Ajimobi as reported by The Cable on January 16, 2015. Just two months before that, the same crop of individuals also scrambled for a sum of 500,000 Naira from the same ‘philanthropist’. It is in the same institution wherein we saw faculty executives claim unabashedly that they spent 40,000 Naira to buy kolanuts for some chiefs at Ooni’s palace. They apparently forgot the words of Abe Lincoln that you cannot fool all the people all the time.

At other times, the funds do not suffer blows from embezzlement per se; they just travel to not-too-worthwhile corners. They get spent on parties, dinners, concerts and other expensive, pointless ventures. They are used to secure a few minutes of noise pollution from ‘stars’ who dazzle their fans in the night, and are gone before daybreak. Many of them have forgotten that only a person with a head should venture into shopping for caps.

Thus, whether big or fantastically small, all hands must grip the wheel of progress and all feet must be firmly on board to pilot the sheep of the academia to the Isle of bounteous harvest. We must collectively ensure that the glorious past is re-enacted in our education system. For if our acknowledged first and acclaimed best is nowhere to be found on the world map, one wonders if any light glimmers at the tunnel’s end for ‘others’. Let us start from the peak and set a shining example. Then, an avalanche of transformation will set all else on track.


‘Kunle Adebajo
08177006861, adekunlebaj@gmail.com

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Hello !

I've started the petition "Guaranty Trust Bank, Inspire Africa, Nigerian Ministry of Youth Development, National Orientation Agency,: BRING BACK "THE DEBATERS REALITY SHOW"!" and need your help to get it off the ground.

Will you take 30 seconds to sign it right now? Here's the link:

http://www.change.org/p/guaranty-trust-bank-inspire-africa-nigerian-ministry-of-youth-development-national-orientation-agency-bring-back-the-debaters-reality-show

Hello !

I've started the petition "Guaranty Trust Bank, Inspire Africa, Nigerian Ministry of Youth Development, National Orientation Agency,: BRING BACK "THE DEBATERS REALITY SHOW"!" and need your help to get it off the ground.

Will you take 30 seconds to sign it right now? Here's the link:

http://www.change.org/p/guaranty-trust-bank-inspire-africa-nigerian-ministry-of-youth-development-national-orientation-agency-bring-back-the-debaters-reality-show

Hello !

I've started the petition "Guaranty Trust Bank, Inspire Africa, Nigerian Ministry of Youth Development, National Orientation Agency,: BRING BACK "THE DEBATERS REALITY SHOW"!" and need your help to get it off the ground.

Will you take 30 seconds to sign it right now? Here's the link:

http://www.change.org/p/guaranty-trust-bank-inspire-africa-nigerian-ministry-of-youth-development-national-orientation-agency-bring-back-the-debaters-reality-show

Hello !

I've started the petition "Guaranty Trust Bank, Inspire Africa, Nigerian Ministry of Youth Development, National Orientation Agency,: BRING BACK "THE DEBATERS REALITY SHOW"!" and need your help to get it off the ground.

Will you take 30 seconds to sign it right now? Here's the link:

http://www.change.org/p/guaranty-trust-bank-inspire-africa-nigerian-ministry-of-youth-development-national-orientation-agency-bring-back-the-debaters-reality-show

Hello !

I've started the petition "Guaranty Trust Bank, Inspire Africa, Nigerian Ministry of Youth Development, National Orientation Agency,: BRING BACK "THE DEBATERS REALITY SHOW"!" and need your help to get it off the ground.

Will you take 30 seconds to sign it right now? Here's the link:

http://www.change.org/p/guaranty-trust-bank-inspire-africa-nigerian-ministry-of-youth-development-national-orientation-agency-bring-back-the-debaters-reality-show

Hello !

I've started the petition "Guaranty Trust Bank, Inspire Africa, Nigerian Ministry of Youth Development, National Orientation Agency,: BRING BACK "THE DEBATERS REALITY SHOW"!" and need your help to get it off the ground.

Will you take 30 seconds to sign it right now? Here's the link:

http://www.change.org/p/guaranty-trust-bank-inspire-africa-nigerian-ministry-of-youth-development-national-orientation-agency-bring-back-the-debaters-reality-show

Hello !

I've started the petition "Guaranty Trust Bank, Inspire Africa, Nigerian Ministry of Youth Development, National Orientation Agency,: BRING BACK "THE DEBATERS REALITY SHOW"!" and need your help to get it off the ground.

Will you take 30 seconds to sign it right now? Here's the link:

http://www.change.org/p/guaranty-trust-bank-inspire-africa-nigerian-ministry-of-youth-development-national-orientation-agency-bring-back-the-debaters-reality-show

Hello !

I've started the petition "Guaranty Trust Bank, Inspire Africa, Nigerian Ministry of Youth Development, National Orientation Agency,: BRING BACK "THE DEBATERS REALITY SHOW"!" and need your help to get it off the ground.

Will you take 30 seconds to sign it right now? Here's the link:

http://www.change.org/p/guaranty-trust-bank-inspire-africa-nigerian-ministry-of-youth-development-national-orientation-agency-bring-back-the-debaters-reality-show

Hello !

I've started the petition "Guaranty Trust Bank, Inspire Africa, Nigerian Ministry of Youth Development, National Orientation Agency,: BRING BACK "THE DEBATERS REALITY SHOW"!" and need your help to get it off the ground.

Will you take 30 seconds to sign it right now? Here's the link:

http://www.change.org/p/guaranty-trust-bank-inspire-africa-nigerian-ministry-of-youth-development-national-orientation-agency-bring-back-the-debaters-reality-show

Hello !

I've started the petition "Guaranty Trust Bank, Inspire Africa, Nigerian Ministry of Youth Development, National Orientation Agency,: BRING BACK "THE DEBATERS REALITY SHOW"!" and need your help to get it off the ground.

Will you take 30 seconds to sign it right now? Here's the link:

http://www.change.org/p/guaranty-trust-bank-inspire-africa-nigerian-ministry-of-youth-development-national-orientation-agency-bring-back-the-debaters-reality-show

Hello !

I've started the petition "Guaranty Trust Bank, Inspire Africa, Nigerian Ministry of Youth Development, National Orientation Agency,: BRING BACK "THE DEBATERS REALITY SHOW"!" and need your help to get it off the ground.

Will you take 30 seconds to sign it right now? Here's the link:

http://www.change.org/p/guaranty-trust-bank-inspire-africa-nigerian-ministry-of-youth-development-national-orientation-agency-bring-back-the-debaters-reality-show

‘Hello Everyone, we know you cannot wait for the next season, thank you for your messages and support. Please stay tuned to this page as something really exciting is coming your way soon. Oratory … the power to change [Posted on Facebook on the 5th of July, 2011]’.

And that was the last we heard of The Debaters, a reality TV show which once kept thousands upon thousands of Nigerians glued to their Television sets while its two seasons lasted. This captivating and educative programme was a first of its kind as it gathered some of the country’s best youthful brains, trained them in the almost-lost-art of polemics and enlightened a broad audience sitting in the confines of their home while so-doing. It was a unique programme which rewarded intellectual growth and showed the world that Nigerians aren’t just fantastic on the football pitch or in amphitheatres.

Sadly and to everyone’s dismay, after the completion of the second season, the third never came. For four long years, we’ve waited but it still is not here. That lovely programme vanished into thin air without a word of explanation. But of course, it can easily be assumed that someone got tired of sponsoring it perhaps because it brought no financial gains.

However, this gloomy disappearance and intellectual homicide ensued in the same era where Big Brother Africa has been held for nine years consecutively and with the winner getting a whopping sum of US$300,000 last year. This tragedy is occurring in the same era Nigerian Idol, another Reality show, has been held for five years running. It is happening in the same time where MTN Project Fame has been annually held 7 times in the past and 18 contestants are presently battling it out in the 8th edition. We also have the Glo Naija Sings, Guilder Ultimate Search, Maltina Dance All amongst many others.

The importance of these entertainment shows is not in any way being undermined. But then the non-existence (and premature death) of equally top-class intellectually flavoured programmes (such as ‘The Debaters’ and Zain Africa’s Challenge) depicts the lopsided nature of our priorities.

In the year 2009 when ‘The Debaters’ made its debut, Lola Odedina (Group Head, Communications and External Affairs, GTB) said that GTB’s support for the programme was predicated on the fact that the development of the mind and the intellect is a tool for sustainable development. She also added that if the country would reproduce the like of Anthony Enahoro and Wole Soyinka who had through their oratorical skills been agents of positive change at one time or the other, there is the need for a well-structured system that would breed such agents.

To conclude therefore, I am humbly using this medium to call on Nigeria’s rank and file to strongly demand for the resuscitation of ‘The Debaters Reality Show’ and other programmes like it. Similarly, the bigwigs and large corporations in our society should also support intellectual activities as much as they do for recreational ones.

Particularly, the National Orientation Agency, the Ministries of Education and Youth Development and finally, Inspire Africa (which initiated it ab intio), should all strive to revive ‘The Debaters’ soon and in earnest. It will cost virtually nothing, yet the intellectual drive that we stand to benefit is simply enormous.

Bring Back The Debaters! Bring it back. Make it bigger and better.

God bless Nigeria! ✊



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Thanks in advance

What are the Sunnahs and etiquettes that we
should act in accordance with on the day of Eid?.
.
.
Praise be to Allaah.
.
The Sunnahs that the Muslim should observe on
the day of Eid are as follows:
.
1 – Doing ghusl before going out to the prayer.
.
It was narrated in a saheeh hadeeth in al-Muwatta’
and elsewhere that ‘Abd-Allaah ibn ‘Umar used to
do ghusl on the day of al-Fitr before going out to
the prayer-place in the morning. Al-Muwatta’ 428.
Al- Nawawi (may Allaah have mercy on him) said
that the Muslims were unanimously agreed that it
is mustahabb to do ghusl for Eid prayer.
The reason why it is mustahabb is the same
reason as that for doing ghusl before Jumu’ah and
other public gatherings. Rather on Eid the reason
is even stronger.
.
2 – Eating before going out to pray on Eid al-Fitr
and after the prayer on Eid al-Adha:
.
Part of the etiquette is not to go out to pray on
Eid al-Fitr until one has eaten some dates,
because of the hadeeth narrated by al-Bukhaari
from Anas ibn Maalik, who said that the
Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) used not to go out on the
morning of Eid al-Fitr until he had eaten some
dates… of which he would eat an odd number. Al-
Bukhaari, 953.
.
It is mustahabb to eat before going out to
emphasize the fact that it is forbidden to fast on
that day and to demonstrate that the fast has
ended.
.
Ibn Hajar (may Allaah have mercy on him)
suggested that the reason for that was so as to
ward off the possibility of adding to the fast, and
to hasten to obey the command of Allaah. Al-
Fath , 2/446
.
Whoever does not have any dates may break his
fast with anything that is permissible.
But on Eid al-Adha it is mustahabb not to eat
anything until one comes back from the prayer, so
he should eat from the udhiyah if he has offered a
sacrifice. If he is not going to offer a sacrifice
there is nothing wrong with eating before the
prayer.
.
3 – Takbeer on the day of Eid
.
This is one of the greatest Sunnahs on the day of
Eid because Allaah says (interpretation of the
meaning):
.
“(He wants that you) must complete the same
number (of days), and that you must magnify
Allaah [i.e. to say Takbeer (Allaahu Akbar: Allaah
is the Most Great)] for having guided you so that
you may be grateful to Him”
[al-Baqarah 2:185]
.
It was narrated that al-Waleed ibn Muslim said: I
asked al-Awzaa’i and Maalik ibn Anas about saying
Takbeer out loud on the two Eids. They said, Yes,
‘Abd-Allaah ibn ‘Umar used to say it out loud on
the day of al-Fitr until the imam came out (to lead
the prayers).
.
It was narrated in a saheeh report that ‘Abd al-
Rahmaan al-Sulami said, “They emphasized it
more on the day of al-Fitr than the day of al-
Adha.”. Wakee’ said, this refers to the takbeer.
See Irwa’ al-Ghaleel , 3/122/
Al-Daaraqutni and others narrated that on the
morning of Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha, Ibn ‘Umar
would strive hard in reciting takbeer until he came
to the prayer place, then he would recite takbeer
until the imam came out.
.
Ibn Abi Shaybah narrated with a saheeh isnaad
that al-Zuhri said: The people used to recite
Takbeer on Eid when they came out of their
houses until they came to the prayer place, and
until the imam came out. When the imam came
out they fell silent, and when he said takbeer they
said takbeer. See Irwa’ al-Ghaleel , 1/121
.
Saying takbeer when coming out of one's house
to the prayer place and until the imam came out
was something that was well known among the
salaf (early generations). This has been narrated
by a number of scholars such as Ibn Abi Shaybah,
‘Abd a l-Razzaaq and al-Firyaabi in Ahkaam al-
Eidayn from a group of the salaf. For example,
Naafi’ ibn Jubayr used to recite takbeer and was
astonished that the people did not do so, and he
said, “Why do you not recite takbeer?”
Ibn Shihaab al-Zuhri (may Allaah have mercy on
him) used to say, “The people used to recite
takbeer from the time they came out of their
houses until the imam came in.”
.
The time for takbeer on Eid al-Fitr starts from the
night before Eid until the imam enters to lead the
Eid prayer.
.
In the case of Eid al-Adha, the takbeer begins on
the first day of Dhu’l-Hijjah and lasts until sunset
on the last of the days of tashreeq.
.
Description of the takbeer:
It was narrated in the Musannaf of Ibn Abi
Shaybah with a saheeh isnaad from Ibn Mas’ood
(may Allaah be pleased with him) that he used to
recite takbeer during the days of tashreeq:
Allaahu akbar, Allaahu akbar, laa ilaaha ill-Allaah,
wa Allaahu akbar, Allaah akbar, wa Lillaah il-hamd
(Allaah is Most Great, Allaah is most Great, there
is no god but Allaah, Allaah is Most great, Allaah
is most great, and to Allaah be praise).
.
It was also narrated elsewhere by Ibn Abi Shaybah
with the same isnaad, but with the phrase
“Allaahu akbar” repeated three times.
Al-Mahaamili narrated with a saheeh isnaad also
from Ibn Mas’ood: “Allaahu akbaru kabeera,
Allaahu akbaru kabeera, Allaahu akbar wa ajallu,
Allaahu akbar wa Lillaah il-hamd (Allaah is Most
Great indeed, Allaah is Most Great indeed, Allaah
is most Great and Glorified, Allaah is Most Great
and to Allaah be praise).” See al-Irwa’ , 3/126.
.
4 – Offering congratulations
.
The etiquette of Eid also includes the
congratulations and good wishes exchanged by
people, no matter what the wording, such as
saying to one another Taqabbala Allaah minna wa
minkum (May Allaah accept (good deeds) from us
and from you” or “Eid mubaarak ” and other
permissible expressions of congratulations.
It was narrated that Jubayr ibn Nufayr said: When
the companions of the Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) met one another
on the day of Eid, they would say to one another,
“May Allaah accept (good deeds) from us and
from you.” Ibn Hajar said, its isnaad is hasan. Al-
Fath , 2/446.
.
Offering congratulations was something that was
well known among the Sahaabah, and scholars
such as Imam Ahmad and others allowed it. There
is evidence which suggests that it is prescribed to
offer congratulations and good wishes on special
occasions, and that the Sahaabah congratulated
one another when good things happened, such as
when Allaah accepted the repentance of a man,
they went and congratulated him for that, and so
on.
.
Undoubtedly these congratulations are among the
noble characteristics among the Muslims.
The least that may be said concerning the subject
of congratulations is that you should return the
greetings of those who congratulate you on Eid,
and keep quiet if others keep quiet, as Imam
Ahmad (may Allaah have mercy on him) said: If
anyone congratulates you, then respond,
otherwise do not initiate it.
.
5 – Adorning oneself on the occasion of Eid.
.
It was narrated that ‘Abd-Allaah ibn ‘Umar (may
Allaah be pleased with him) said that ‘Umar took a
brocade cloak that was for sale in the market and
brought it to the Messenger of Allaah (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him), and said, “O
Messenger of Allaah, buy this and adorn yourself
with it for Eid and for receiving the delegations.”
The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) said to him, “Rather this is
the dress of one who has no share (of piety or of
reward in the Hereafter)…” Narrated by al-
Bukhaari, 948.
.
The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him) agreed with ‘Umar on the idea of
adorning oneself for Eid, but he denounced him for
choosing this cloak because it was made of silk.
It was narrated that Jaabir (may Allaah be pleased
with him) said: The Prophet (peace and blessings
of Allaah be upon him) had a cloak which he
would wear on the two Eids and on Fridays.
Saheeh Ibn Khuzaymah , 1756,
Al-Bayhaqi narrated with a saheeh isnaad that Ibn
‘Umar used to wear his best clothes on Eid.
.
So a man should wear the best clothes that he
has when going out for Eid.
.
With regard to women, they should avoid adorning
themselves when they go out for Eid, because they
are forbidden to show off their adornments to non-
mahram men. It is also haraam for a woman who
wants to go out to put on perfume or to expose
men to temptation, because they are only going
out for the purpose of worship.
.
6 – Going to the prayer by one route and
returning by another.
.
It was narrated that Jaabir ibn ‘Abd-Allaah (may
Allaah be pleased with him) said: On the day of
Eid, the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him) used to vary his route. Narrated by al-
Bukhaari, 986.
.
It was said that the reason for that was so that
the two routes would testify for him on the Day of
Resurrection, for the earth will speak on the Day
of Resurrection and say what was done on it, both
good and bad.
.
And it was said that it was in order to manifest
the symbols of Islam on both routes, or to
manifest the remembrance of Allaah (dhikr), or to
annoy the hypocrites and Jews, and to scare them
with the large number of people who were with
him. And it was said that it was in order to attend
to the people’s needs, to answer their questions,
teach them, set an example and give charity to the
needy, or to visit his relatives and uphold the ties
of kinship.
.
And Allaah knows best.
.
.
.
Source: islamqa.info/en/36442

I write this because of millions of Nigerians who are below 30 and who constitute a significant chunk of our voting population.
.
This is the ICT generation that is largely ignorant about the events of the Buhari era (1983-85) and so can be misinformed and misled by needless
propaganda. I have sat with many in the under-30 bracket and those slightly above who only have faint recollections of the Buhari era and the level of
ignorance about that era is amazing.
.
Before being MILITARY Head of State, Buhari had been Governor of one of the Northern States (under Obasanjo’s Military government) as well as Minister for Petroleum. He later served as Chairman of PTF under Abacha.
.
.
Please consider the following unassailable facts:
.
·He birthed and supervised the establishment of our existing refineries.
.
·There was no religious crisis while he was Head of State. It started under his successor IBB!
.
·In his time as Head of State he reduced inflation from 23% to 4%, by fiscal discipline and a homegrown economic team (not achieved under any other era, even military).
.
·JJ Rawlings of Ghana took over 2yrs before him, and killed all the corrupt leaders, while Buhari only sentenced the corrupt leaders here to prison.
.
·Under his watch as PTF Chairman, what he did in road construction in that short period hasn't been matched by 12yrs of the PDP.
.
·Hospitals and universities around the country never witnessed as much benefits as they got from the PTF from any government after or before his
time.
.
·Despite serving in senior capacity in the oil sector, first as Minister for Petroleum and then Petroleum Trust Fund, Buhari has no petrol station, much less a rig, refinery or an oil block like so many of our leaders.
.
·He could have retired into nauseating opulence like an IBB or Danjuma or even OBJ but didn't.
.
·Instead of hobnobbing with the high and mighty, he has cast his lot with the ordinary man most of who follow him out of hope and belief in his values.
People who know him have said of him... "All I need from Buhari is his word, I can take it to the bank".
.
·He is the only politician in the North today who fills rallies without renting a crowd. The Kaduna rally of 2nd March is eloquent proof!
.
·He refused to collect an allowance while serving as Chairman of the PTF because he said since he was already drawing a pension from government,
his conscience would not allow him to draw another salary from the purse of the same government.
.
·He is the only former head of state that does not own property or land in Abuja.
.
·Every attempt to rubbish him through probes in time past ended up vindicating him! The man who was asked by OBJ to take over the running of PTF before it was scrapped with the aim of probing and indicting Buhari, was the one who ended up being prosecuted for misappropriating $100m of PTF
funds!
.
Buhari again, was vindicated.
.
·He has OPENLY challenged those who accuse him of religious fundamentalism to come out and show proof. No one has till today, taken up the challenge.
His personal driver of many years is a Christian from Plateau State !
.
·His government initiated the War Against Indiscipline that has made environmental cleanliness, queuing up, not urinating by the roadside etc features of our national life even till
today.
.
Does it then surprise you why corrupt people would be spreading such heinous rumours about Buhari?
.
He is a threat to them and they know what he is capable of doing to corruption and corrupt people when he comes into office!
.
So shine your eyes and make the right decision. If honesty and probity are the things you want for
Nigeria, now is the time to choose right. When you cast your vote for the BUHARI, you would have cast one vote for a honest man.
.
.
Now that you know better, will you please educate another person.
.
FACEBOOK POST WRITTEN BY:
Optimist-Nurudeen Temilola Yusuf
.
TITLED:
WHO IS AFRAID OF BUHARI?

cheruv: as an Indian she's making noise... to hell with her!!

So She'll make sense were she to be a Briton?

Well done, Sir!

HISTORY OF THIS MYTH
.
According to folklorists, there is no written
evidence for a "Friday the 13th" superstition before
the 19th century. The earliest known
documented reference in English occurs in Henry
Sutherland Edwards' 1869 biography of Gioachino
Rossini, who died on a Friday 13th.
.
“He [Rossini] was surrounded to the last by
admiring friends; and if it be true that, like so
many Italians, he regarded Fridays as an
unlucky day and thirteen as an unlucky
number, it is remarkable that one Friday 13th
of November he died.”
.
Several theories have been proposed about the
origin of the Friday the 13th superstition.
One theory states that it is a modern
amalgamation of two older superstitions: that 13 is
an unlucky number and that Friday is an unlucky
day.
.
In numerology, the number twelve is considered
the number of divine organizational arrangement
or chronological completeness, as reflected in
the twelve months of the year, twelve hours of
the clock day, twelve gods of Olympus , twelve
tribes of Israel , twelve Apostles of Jesus, the 12
successors of Muhammad in Shia Islam , twelve
signs of the Zodiac , the 12 years of the
Buddhist cycle, etc., whereas the number
thirteen was considered irregular, transgressing
this completeness. There is also a superstition,
thought by some to derive from the Last Supper
or a Norse myth, that having thirteen people
seated at a table results in the death of one of
the diners.
.
Friday has been considered an unlucky day at
least since the 14th century's The Canterbury
Tales, and many other professions have
regarded Friday as an unlucky day to undertake
journeys or begin new projects.
Christians commemorate the crucifixion of
Jesus on the Friday before Easter.
.
One author, noting that references are all but
nonexistent before 1907 but frequently seen
thereafter, has argued that its popularity derives
from the publication that year of Thomas W.
Lawson 's popular novel Friday, the Thirteenth, in which an unscrupulous broker takes
advantage of the superstition to create a Wall
Street panic on a Friday the 13th.
.
Records of the superstition are rarely found
before the 20th century, when it became
extremely common. The connection between the
Friday the 13th superstition and the Knights
Templar was popularized in Dan Brown 's 2003
novel The Da Vinci Code and in John J.
Robinson 's 1989 work Born in Blood: The Lost
Secrets of Freemasonry . On Friday, 13 October
1307, hundreds of the Knights Templar were
arrested in France, an action apparently
motivated financially and undertaken by the
efficient royal bureaucracy to increase the
prestige of the crown. Philip IV was the force
behind this ruthless move, but it has also
tarnished the historical reputation of Clement V.
From the very day of Clement V's coronation,
the king falsely charged the Templars with
heresy, immorality and abuses, and the scruples
of the Pope were compromised by a growing
sense that the burgeoning French State might
not wait for the Church, but would proceed
independently. However, experts agree that
this is a relatively recent correlation, and most
likely a modern-day invention.
.
Phobia names and etymology.
.
The fear of Friday the 13th has been called
friggatriskaidekaphobia (Frigga being the name of
the Norse goddess for whom "Friday" is named in
English and triskaidekaphobia meaning fear of the
number thirteen), or paraskevidekatriaphobia a concatenation of the Greek words Paraskeví
(Παρασκευή, meaning "Friday", and dekatreís
(δεκατρείς, meaning "thirteen" attached to phobía
(φοβία, from phóbos, φόβος, meaning "fear". The
latter word was derived in 1911 [ citation needed ]
and first appeared in a mainstream source in 1953.
.
Notable people who died on Friday the 13th
Person
.
Sam Patch: 13 November 1829 [21]
Gioachino Rossini: 13 November 1868
Diamond Jim Brady: 13 April 1917
Sir Henry Segrave: 13 June 1930
Arnold Schoenberg: 13 July 1951
Martita Hunt: 13 June 1969
Lily Pons: 13 February 1976
Mickey Spillane: 13 May 1977
Hubert Humphrey: 13 January 1978
Ralph Kirkpatrick: 13 April 1984
Christopher Wilder: 13 April 1984
Benny Goodman: 13 June 1986
Gerald Moore: 13 March 1987
Chet Baker: 13 May 1988
Stuart Challender: 13 December 1991
Tupac Shakur: 13 September 1996
Jaime Garzon: 13 August 1999
Tony Roper: 13 October 2000
Julia Child: 13 August 2004
Tim Russert: 13 June 2008
Edwin Newman: 13 August 2010
Richard D. Zanuck: 13 July 2012
.
Source: http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Friday_the_13th