Local

By Aliyu Nuhu

Kano, my state, my people. We don’t like rules and regulations. We are headstrong and lawless. Truth is bitter. Well, there are a few law-abiding people in Kano, no doubt all cannot be the same. But the majority carries the day. Most Kano people hate order and regulations.

I am from Kano State, so I cannot be accused of unfairly profiling other people. But I know how difficult and lawless my people can be. People build houses without planning or permits. A Kano slum is like no other anywhere. No wonder address is non-existent in unplanned areas outside GRAs. Kano’s historical wall has all disappeared. People don’t care about antiquity, history and heritage. They simply demolished the walls and built houses and shops. They defecate everywhere near the wall, it was the reason why UNESCO disqualified the ancient Kano wall as a world heritage site.

Nearly all the vehicles in Kano are not properly registered and the vehicle licences are never renewed. Almost every motorist has no driver’s license. The FRSC data is there for all to verify. We don’t pay taxes. We resist paying for electricity and water bills. Mosques don’t pay for utilities. PHCN has given up on collecting revenue from mosques. Disconnection is resisted with violence. Kaduna State generates more IGR than Kano despite the huge population and business gap.

We dump refuse everywhere, even in the marketplace, school buildings and hospitals. We dig government constructed roads to wire our personal wirings and other house fittings without any fear. We even build and erect some structures such as kiosks, etc, on people’s paths and nobody cares, since everything is done according to what one likes.

We are one state that resisted seatbelt laws to a standstill and beat up FRSC and VIO officials. FRSC has given up on enforcing the law. It is the Kano people that invented their own version of seatbelt law that says passengers don’t need to wear seatbelts. Women are exempted from all traffic violations. Hardly you see Hisbah, Police, FRSC stopping women. The reason is that the husbands will react violently if their wives or daughters are questioned. We are prone to riots at the slightest provocation. Previously, religious riots is rampant. People take laws into their hands. 

Before the Corona lockdown, people had disobeyed previous restrictions imposed by the government. Entry into the state was disobeyed by the indigenes of Kano. They came from index places like Lagos and Abuja and refused testing and isolation. They navigated through bushes to penetrate the state. Those returning from abroad refused to isolate themselves. Kano people don’t want to know what is social distancing. The Almajiri ban has been resisted and the system has continued unchecked. So I know what I was saying when I referred to Kano people as unruly and fractious. Yes, it is my state, but it is a bitter truth! When it also comes to the better side of Kano, I will also talk. I have a lot to say on that as well. That’s for another day.

Aliyu Nuhu writes from Abuja, Nigeria.

By Uzair Adam Imam 

The bandits who abducted a pregnant woman in Jalingo, Taraba State, have refused to release her despite being in labour.

The Daily Reality gathered that the bandits kept demanding for ransom to release the woman.

The woman who fell into labour in captivity was said to have visited her parents for maternity leave from Kano.

However, the bandits called the father of the abducted pregnant woman and demanded immediate ransom.

It was gathered that the shooters, who targeted three houses in the area, operated for about forty minutes without any interruption.

DSP Usman Abdullahi, the police spokesperson of Taraba Command, confirmed the abduction of the pregnant woman and six others.

Banditry and kidnapping are the significant security challenges bedevilling the country over the years. 

The menacing security challenge lingers despite the threats and promises by the federal government to mitigate the issue.

By Uzair Adam Imam 

The Kano State Commissioner for Rural Development, Musa Ilyasu Kwankwaso, has resigned to contest for the House of Representatives in the 2023 general election. 

Kwankwaso resigned barely hours after Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje gave political appointees wishing to run for elective offices 24 hours to quit.

The Daily Reality learnt that Kwankwaso wishes to contest for membership in the House of Representatives representing the Kura, Madobi and Garun Malam federal constituency.

In a statement Sunday by his Chief Press Secretary, Governor Ganduje has directed all his political appointees that want to contest for elections in 2023 to resign.

The governor said all appointees are given between now and Monday, April 18, to tender their resignation.

The statement partly read: “Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje directed all political appointees running for elective offices in the forthcoming 2023 general elections to resign from their respective positions.”

By Ibrahim A. El-Caleel

Muslims across the world love to complete the recitation of the Qur’an in Ramadan due to different reasons.

Firstly, it was within the blessed month that the Qur’ān was sent down all at one time from Al-Lauhul Mahfūz (the Preserved tablet) to Al-Baitul Izzah (House of Might) in the heaven of this world.

Secondly, actions in this month are rewarded in manifolds. Good deeds and bad deeds alike. Ramadan has a single night whose eminence is better than a thousand months- 83 years+. Imagine submitting an act of good deed in this night and getting it accepted. The reward will be awesome.

Reciting the Qur’an is an easy way of accumulating good rewards. It is rewarded per alphabet. Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) said it is a 10-fold reward per alphabet each recited. An Uthmāni script of the Qur’an contains 604 pages, with each page having 15 lines. The estimated number of characters/alphabets in the Qur’ān is 330,000. Therefore, if you calculate the anticipated number of rewards for reciting the whole Qur’ān, you’ll see that it is massive. The reward becomes exponentially colossal if you factor in the multiplier effect of Ramadan.

This is why scholars of Islam from all walks of disciplines retire to the Qur’ān once it is Ramadan. They momentarily suspend studies in Hadīth, Fiqh, I’tiqād, History to settle for the Qur’ān so as to maximize the benefits in Ramadan. Mujāhid bn Jabr, a tabi’i expert in Tafseer used to complete the Qur’ān in every night in Ramadan. Imamul Shafi’i would complete the Qur’an 60 times in Ramadan!

Every conscious Muslim is looking forward to completing the recitation of the Qur’ān in Ramadan. It is a “bonanza period” for you to double your good deeds and earn some handsome rewards in your Book of Record. This is why everyone works on a plan to complete the Qur’ān. I have seen different plans that divide the Qur’an into number of pages, or rubu’, hizb or juz which should be covered on daily basis to complete the Noble Book before Ramadan elapses. Some go as detailed as breaking it down to recitals after each of the five obligatory prayers on daily basis.

AlhamdulilLahi. All these are implementable plans if one has the discipline to sustain them.

However, I have never tried following them because I do not have the organized sustenance culture in reading. And in the near past, either in 2016 or 17, there was a Ramadan where I was unable to complete the Qur’ān. Though there was nothing sinful about that, I wasn’t happy. I could make only around 45hizbs, falling short of 15. And since then I settled for my own personal plan.

My personal plan afterwards was a resolution not to join Taraweeh prayers in congregation unless I have completed the Qur’ān. Therefore, in the early days of Ramadan, typically before 10th, I do my taraweeh alone at home. I would silence-mode my phone to avoid any distraction. I would then pray my taraweeh typically covering 6 hizbs daily, in either two or four raka’ahs depending on my selection. It typically lasts two hours, or with an additional 30 minutes. Of course, the standing isnt easy but nothing rewarding has ever been easy. So, I bear it. Immediately after completing this taraweeh, I fall asleep. Saving me from the addition of late night punching of my phone.

This plan has been working for me, AlhamdulilLah. I am not sharing it for a holier-than-thou extravaganza, subhanallah. May Allah protect our deeds from show-off, Amin. But I am sharing it because it might be a method someone would want to adopt, especially for workers who run an 8am to 5pm work. They might not have chance to read the Qur’an during work hours in the day. And they may be thinking of what other plan can they adopt since they want to complete this Noble Book.

You don’t have to be a Qur’an memorizer to adopt this method. All you need is this copy of the Mushaf that is usually divided by hizbs selections numbering 1-10 (6 hizbs each) or numbering 1-6 (10 hizbs each). They are portable for use in prayers. And if you want to use the Qur’an app in your phone, no problem. You might just consider putting your phone in ‘Airplane Mode’ to ward off distractions.

It is halāl (permissible) to pray while holding the Qur’ān according to the most correct scholarly opinion. This applies to everyone- whether they are Qur’ān memorizers or not. In fact, Imamul Nawawiy considers it wajib if one hasn’t memorized Suratul Fātiha, then he must hold a Qur’ān and pray because not having Suratul Fatiha in your human brain isn’t an excuse for you not to pray. Therefore, whether you have the Qur’an at heart or not, you can still recite from the mushaf while in prayers.

If Islamic scholars are suspending other fields of knowledge to complete the Qur’ān in Ramadan, you can suspend social media to do same. If you want to use your annual leave, casual leave or compassionate leave from work, then so be it. It worths doing all these.

May Allah grant us the ability to maximize our time in Ramadan, Amin.

El-Caleel writes from Zaria, Kaduna State

By Uzair Adam Imam 

Four abducted female students of the College of Health Science and Technology, Tsafe in Zamfara State, regained freedom Thursday, April 14, 2022.

The Deputy Provost of the college, Jamilu Lawal, made the disclosure, adding that the students were released unhurt. 

He added that the four female students had been taken to the hospital for medical screening.

The Daily Reality learnt that no ransom was paid to the bandits for the release of the students. 

The students were reportedly abducted last Tuesday night in Tsafe town.

By Muhammad Sabiu

Following a boat tragedy on the Shagari River in the Shagari local government area of Sokoto state, 26 people have been confirmed deceased, with the search continuing.

Aliyu Dantani, Chairman of Shagari Council Area, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Sokoto on Wednesday that the accident happened on Tuesday evening.

Dantani added that 21 of the 26 bodies retrieved were women, while five were children, and that a search and rescue attempt was still underway.

On the other hand, the chairman stated that the exact number of passengers on the boat could not be determined right away.

He said that local divers were currently in the river, trying to figure out how to recover dead or save lives.

By Uzair Adam Imam 

Citizens in Kahiyal in Bugaje word of Jibia, Katsina State, have bravely stood up to bandits who invaded the village to collect tax from the innocent people. 

The Daily Reality gathered that two armed bandits came into the village in broad daylight, asking people to give them money. 

The villagers feigned to oblige but only for one of them to quickly grab the bandit’s rifle while dropping the money. Other locals, who also had their weapons, helped him.

A citizen, Professor Abdussamad Umar Jibia, narrated the incident on his Facebook wall.

He said the bandits “stayed in one place and asked the villagers to contribute money and bring it to them. 

“The villagers did that. However, unfortunately for the criminals, the person who brought the money dropped it and quickly grasped the boy holding the rifle. 

“Other villagers who were ready with their local weapons rushed on the criminals and finished them off as it should be,” he said.

Insecurity and banditry are the major security issues bedevilling the northwestern part of the country, leading to thousands of deaths while numerous others are forced to migrate.

The criminals impose unlawful taxes on countless farmers and others living in the affected areas.

By Umar Farouk 

Power brokers and political gladiators begin to fracture the peace and unity of Jigawa State and polarise its youths for their personal interests and idiosyncrasies. This challenge is further compounded by a misguided view of amalgamation by some segments of Jigawa as more of a historicized occurrence without any barefaced or hidden advantage to the state; a mindset that further promoted deliberate demonstration of impunity, as well as superiority by one group or zone against the other.

But to dramatize this superiority complex, the point people did forget is that never should one be so foolish to believe that you are stirring admiration by flaunting the qualities that raised you above others. By making them aware of their inferior positions, you are only sowing the seed of bitterness and envy that will hunt you back in ways you might not imagine.

Regardless of what others may say, it has plundered the socio-economic affairs of the nation to a sorry state; an occurrence that stems from an unknown leadership style described by analysts as neither ‘system nor method based’ without anything exemplary or impressive. While this appalling situation unfolds in our political space, the global leadership stage is littered with telling evidence about leaders that have demonstrated leadership sagacity and professional ingenuity that our leaders have refused to replicate their resourcefulness on our shores.

Having discovered the challenge threatening the continued existence of Jigawa State, it becomes imperative to say that whatever might be the failure, we must as a state begin to return to where we came from and what we were known for. But whatever measure we may want to use in tackling this challenge can only succeed if it probably puts in place steps that will guarantee leadership restructuring.

Catalyzing the process of building the Jigawa of our dreams that is laced with good leadership will among other demands require sincere and selfless leadership, a politically and economically restructured polity brought by the consciousness that can unleash the social, economic and political transformation of the state while rejecting the present system that has bred, inefficiency, a primitive capital accumulation that socially excluded the vast majority of our people.

Above all, to completely put things right, the state government must recognize our position, for Jigawa to be a society of equal citizens where opportunities are equal, a personal contribution is recognized and rewarded on merit regardless of town, zone or political affiliations.
The best hope we have is to use the 2023 general elections to stop politicians that cannot draw a distinction between politics and leadership. And in its place, enthrone leaders that will align their aspirations with the people and compel leaders to stick to their campaign mandates, preventing them from reneging when elected into power. 

Yes, politics and politicking are about the quest for power. Indeed, one of the major attributes of politics is the acquisition and devolution of power. In a democracy, one of the recognized processes of getting representation and power is through an election. The purpose of an election is to get power. Thus, any person or party desirous of electoral victory must carry the electorates along by effective stakeholders’ engagement which includes consultations, program exposition; interest aggregation and consensus building which among other things is for the purpose of ensuring equity and allaying fears of oppression and domination.

No doubt, the issue of power devolution has been a very knotty issue in Jigawa state politics. Similarly, zoning as a tool for power-sharing has been a very contentious one. The major advocates of zoning or rotational leadership are the people from Hedejia Emirate Zone. Thus, the canvassing for power shift should demonstrate and implement it in their zone.

For me, the concept of zoning or power rotation may sound mossy, and it may not be ideal for our situation fraught with fear of domination, distrust, apathy and immaturity.

Democracy is about people, their representation and not power-sharing. It may have many variants depending on the people, their culture, history and political ideology.

Clearly, adopting zoning practice may not eliminate the monolithic over-centralized system that brings tyranny, mediocrity, impunity and a winner-takes-all mentality among other things. Carrying everybody along will reduce apathy – something that has been identified as the bane of our local politics. I must advise that as a matter of necessity, we should eschew the if-not-my-zone-nobody-else-should-lead mentality and work for the success of Jigawa State.

Our people must shun disunity, disorganization, sentiment and politicians who once they get into office would bring unprecedented hardship, chaos and hopelessness. As I believe, we all want, hope and pray for one thing – a state where peace, stability, fairness, equity and love shall reign supreme.

May Almighty Allah Bless Jigawa state, ameen.

Umar writes from Jigawa, he can be reached via 08081058283.

By Abdullahi Abdullateef

The Lagos State Government, through the Health Facility Monitoring and Accreditation Agency (HEFAMAA) has shut down Medville Global Health Centre located in Okota area of the state over its illegal operation and low numbers of personnel working in the hospital.

This is contained in a statement signed by the Head Public Affairs of HEFAMAA, Mr Muyideen Ayokunle Uthman on Tuesday, 5th April, 2022.

According to the statement, the Executive Secretary of the Agency, Dr Abiola Idowu, says that the Medville Global Health Centre which is located at 1, Bashiru street, off Lateef Adegboyega street, Ago Palace Way, Okota is sealed for not complying with the set standards.

Reacting to the demise of one Mr Triplem C. Mchaty’s wife, she said the agency carried out preliminary investigations which revealed that the hospital was not registered with HEFAMAA, noting that this contravened the 2006 health sector reform law.

She stated, “It means the facility was operating illegally.” She added that the hospital had inadequate personnel.

Reiterating the allegation on social media, in a tweet, one Mr Triplem C. Mchaty @scantee stressed the sad moments on his Twitter account @scantee. The tweet reads thus:

“Good morning family, I am really heartbroken now. My wife died at MEADVILLE GLOBAL HEALTH CENTRE (HOSPITAL) NO. 1 Bashiru street,off Lateef Adegboyega Street, Ago Palace Way, Okota.

“We just got married 10 months ago, she took in, she was undergoing Antenatal in Onitsha, Anambra [state].”

However, Dr Idowu disclosed that the Chairman Dr Solanke Kayo Esq. has ordered the agency to carry out a full investigation to uncover the facts of her death.

Relating with the closure of the hospital, she maintained that the agency has taken the crucial decision in furtherance of public protection awaiting the final outcome of the ongoing investigations.

She finally urged all administrators of health facilities in the state to adhere strictly to the set standards and cooperate with the leadership of Governor Sanwo-Olu.

By Uzair Adam Imam 

The Managing Director, Kano Road and Traffic Agency (KAROTA), Baffa Babba Danagundi, said he wished to resign, but Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje denied him the warrant.

Danagundi disclosed this in a chat with the Daily Trust on Monday. 

He added that Ganduje, through the Acting Governor of the state, Nasiru Gawuna, refused to let him leave the job.

It was gathered that Gawuna rejected the resignation of Danagundi on the orders of the governor, who is currently in the United Arab Emirates.

Danagundi intended to resign to enable him to contest an elective position in the forthcoming election of 2023, as the Electoral Law requires.

Danagundi said, “it is true I tendered my resignation, but the governor rejected it. Hence, I have to take whatever he tells me.”

“The Governor has done a lot for me; he elevated me as Managing Director and did other things politically.

“Honestly, I will not go contrary to whatever decision the governor made on my resignation because he knows the best for me”, he said.