FOMWAN tasks parents, children on hajj, charity

The Federation of Muslim Women’s Association in Nigeria (FOMWAN) FCT chapter has urged parents to inculcate the consciousness of hajj and charity in their children and work towards embarking on the holy pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia for hajj exercise.

The Ameerah of the FOMWAN FCT chapter, Hajiya Fatima Issa Ndako gave the advice on Thursday at the second ‘Hajj Day’ seminar, at the FOMWAN Basic School Wuse II, Abuja.

She noted that this is the period of hajj worldwide and also the lunar months of Zul-Hijja that people are currently in the holy land to perform hajj rites.

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“Today’s program has been a very wonderful and we thank Allah Almighty for giving us the opportunity and the wisdom to initiate the program. I really love it and the children love it. And I can see that we are satisfied with how it went and the children are so happy. That is among our aims.

“The program is aimed to educate our children on the importance of hajj. Hajj is one of the five pillars of Islam. It is a very vital aspect of Islam and we really like to make our children know, understand how it is carried out so that they can be able to ask questions anywhere and it would be easier when they are finally in the holy land to perform the hajj rites.

Asked if the quest by the children to perform the hajj rites would not distract them from their studies, and also the high cost of paying for the hajj, she said that they have always tell the children that they should always be truthful in whatever they do and they should always try to get halal source of income and wealth.

She said, “You have to pay the hajj money, and I always tell them that going to hajj with immoral money or illegal money or haram, it is not answered by Allah. Whatever you do that is not allowed, it is not accepted.

“Because our school is Islamic based and I always keep telling our students really to cut away all this kind of temptations. But definitely we have to emphasize on the importance of hajj to them because once once one is able, healthy, and has the means to go, he has to go.”

She also said that it was not wrong for government to positively intervene and subsidise the payment for citizens on hajj pilgrimage.

Also, the Chairperson of Education Committee of the association, Hajiya Aisha Aruwa, noted the importance of hajj and the need to prepare the young Muslims to start working towards performing the pilgrimage in their lifetime.

She said that the performance of the pupils and students on hajj practice has improved more than last year by God’s grace.

“And what we are inculcating and also what we are teaching the children, that all the activities that have been done in Mecca, that’s for the hajj. Alhamdulillah, with the activities that were done in Mecca, that is what we’re doing now as a learning process 

“By now, they know some of the hajj activities that they are supposed to perform either here or there and Alhamdulillah, that is our aim to teach the children since they are from the childhood, they should know the hajj rites and so that they can be practicing and we hope and pray, Almighty Allah will call each and everybody to go for the hajj and do the actual hajj rites, insh Allah,” Aruwa said.

On the fear of distraction and high prices payable, she said, “Going to hajj is a call from Almighty Allah. Some people have the money to go but if Allah did not call them, they would not. It is a call from Almighty Allah and there are those who have the money and also Almighty Allah called them so it is a call from Almighty Allah. If Almighty Allah calls you, whether you have money, whether you don’t have money, there will be means for you to go to hajj and perform one of the five pillars of Islam.”