Opinion
A True And Sincere Muslim Believer Cannot Be Deceived Twice!
Imam Murtadha Gusau
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious and the Most Merciful
All praise is due to Allah, the Lord of all creation—may He extol the Messenger in the highest company of Angels and send His peace and blessings upon him—likewise upon his family, Companions, and true followers.
Dear brothers and sisters! Know that faith (Iman) is that condition of belief from which springs forth a multifaceted act of multiplying virtues. This condition brings into bloom a life full of obedience which in turn generates such deeds that even removing a minor obstacle from someone’s path guarantees reward from Allah Almighty. In other words, a Muslim Believer (Mu’min) becomes such an embodiment of nobility that his heart bleeds if some one gets hurt. Such a faith (Iman) also creates in him the attributes of foresight, prudence, sagacity, sound judgment and understanding. That is why the Noble Qur’an time and again refers to the appealing and overpowering characteristics of a Believer (Mu’min) to encourage believers to maintain their distinct attribute. I am quoting here some Hadiths of our beloved Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) to refresh the belief, to enliven the mind and to nourish the spirit. Abu Hurairah (RA) relates that Prophet (Peace be upon him) said:
“A Believer (Mu’min) is not bitten twice from the same hole.” [Bukhari and Muslim]
That means that a true Believer (Mu’min) would not put his finger twice in a hole to be bitten by a snake. The Hadith educates a Believer (Mu’min) in carefulness, circumspection, foresight, precaution, scrupulousness, and vigilance. According to Prophet (Peace be upon him)’s biographer Ibn Hisham, he (Peace be upon him) first used this sentence and later it became a proverb in the Arabic speaking world. Imam Ahmad (Rahimahullah) writes that a faithless person by the name of Abu Ghurrah al-Hamji used to recite satirical poetry against Islam. He was taken prisoner at the Battle of Badr. He started pleading for forgiveness and said that he had a family and children to look after. Prophet (Peace be upon him) was moved by his petition and forgave him without ransom. Once freed, he went back on his words and started reciting poetry defaming Islam and its Prophet again. By a share coincidence, he was taken prisoner at the Battle of Uhud and pleaded for forgiveness again as before. Had he been forgiven the second time, he could have mocked and boasted to have cheated the Muslims. It was on this occasion the Prophet (Peace be upon him) uttered this very beneficial immortal sentence (Hadith).
Abu Hurairah relates that Prophet (Peace be upon him) said:
“A Believer (Mu’min) is innocent, simple and good natured, and the hypocrite is cunning and mean natured.” [Abu Dawud and at-Tirmidhi]
What the Hadith means is that a Believer (Mu’min), being trustworthy himself, trusts others and can be deceived for being innocent, sincere, honest, and simple. There is yet another Hadith which quotes a dialogue between Paradise and Hell. The Paradise would exclaim:
“What is wrong with me that only the innocent, the simple and the weak will take me as their abode.”
The answer is that a Believer (Mu’min) dislikes finding faults, shortcomings, and weaknesses in others. He is neither curious about them, nor he is eager to publicise them. It is just against his very nature.
Sahl Bin Abdullah Tustari says that the Paradise is referring to people whose hearts are oblivious of every thing except Allah’s remembrance.
Abu Usman (Rahimahullah) declares that such people don’t care much about this world but are very careful about the Hereafter.
Imam Auza’i (Rahimahullah) says:
“Such people are blind towards bad things, but have an excellent vision for virtuous deeds.”
Abu Sa’id Khudri (RA) relates that Prophet (Peace be upon him) said:
“Be fearful of Believers (Mu’min)’s intelligence and his foresight in understanding of the human nature, because he sees things by Allah’s given vision,” and he recited verse 75 of Surah Al-Hijr, which reads: “There truly is a sign in this for those who can learn…” [at-Tirmidhi]
Scholars have interpreted the term: “Understanding of the human nature.” as the ability to perceive things in depth to see their real and true nature, and to deduce factual results from the analysis of situations and circumstances. No one can deceive a true and sincere Believer (Mu’min) because exposed to his penetrating eyes is the real and the fake, the sincere and the hypocrite, the honest and the cheat, and the high and the low. He sees the real worth of people and knows who is who, because he was not a fool (Mumu)!
Abu Hurairah (RA) says that once Prophet Isa (AS) caught a thief red handed and reprimanded him for stealing. The thief said:
“I swear by Him, Who is the Only One worthy of worship, that I did not commit theft.” Seeing the thief’s stubbornness, Prophet Isa (AS) said: “Alright, I have faith (Iman/Belief) in Allah, and accept that my eyes must have betrayed me.” [Muslim]
This attitude of Prophet Isa (AS) tells us that Allah Almighty’s Greatness is embedded in the Believers (Mu’min)’s heart and he surrenders himself in total negation of the self when the name of Allah Almighty is mentioned. There is nothing more important to acknowledge but Allah Almighty’s total and complete sovereignty. According to a Hadith, if a slave while being punished by his owner asks for forgiveness for Allah’s sake, the master should stop his punishment then and there without least hesitation and without wasting a single moment. Instead of arguing with the thief, Prophet Isa (AS) thought to use that opportunity to educate the thief that it was the height of his insolence to swear by Allah’s and then lie. A true and sincere Believer (Mu’min) is always after the betterment of his Hereafter rather than wasting his time in the indulgence of arguments.
Abu Hurairah (RA) relates that Prophet (Peace be upon him) said:
“Do not call grape by the name of Karam, as it is the attribute of a Believer (Mu’min)’s heart.” [Muslim]
The Arabic word “Karam” means kindness and generosity. Arabs used to call grapes by the name of Karam, because they used to make wine from grapes, which was their favourite drink. The then Arabs mistakenly thought that wine helps to create and promote kindness and generosity in man’s character. Prophet (Peace be upon him) disliked such an interpretation because the wine is the mother of all evils. Great scholar Zamakhshari opines that Prophet (Peace be upon him) based his opinion on verse 13 of Surah Al-Hujurat, which reads:
“Oh People, We created you all from a single man and a single woman, and made you into races and tribes so that you should recognise one another. In Allah’s eyes, the most honoured of you are the ones most mindful of Him. Allah is all knowing, all aware.”
When Allah Almighty said the word “Honoured” then it should relate to the heart of a Believer (Mu’min) and be not associated with anything which is totally forbidden. “Honour” comes through piety and purity.”
Abu Sa’id Khudri (RA) said that:
“A Believer (Mu’min) is like a horse tied to its peg, to which he returns after roaming around. Similarly a Believer (Mu’min) is liable to forget but he being faith bound returns to his base.” [Musnad Ahmad]
Abdullah Bin Amr Bin As (RA) relates that Prophet (Peace be upon him) said:
“I swear by Him, Who posses my soul, a Believer (Mu’min) resembles that goldbrick which if thrown in the furnace, neither changes its colour, nor looses its weight. I swear by Him, Who owns my soul that a Believer (Mu’min) is like a honey bee, which sucks nectar from beautiful flowers, turned it into the beneficial honey, and neither misuses or damages the flower petal by her weight.”
Our beloved Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) has likened the character of a true and sincere Believer (Mu’min) to the sterling quality of pure gold and the beneficence of the honey bee. Impure gold if thrown in the furnace looses its weight after its impurities are burned and it also changes its colour. A Believer (Mu’min) is like the honey bee who feeds on the pure and fairly earned livelihood; he is a source of benefit to others and is an agent of peace and brotherhood. He does not harm others or cause any damage to the environment. By extension, this example teaches us patriotism; love for the community, respect for neighbours, and makes us aware for the better maintenance of our social, natural and physical environment. Let us listen to two other Prophetic Hadiths, as quoted by Abu Musa (RA), Prophet (Peace be upon him) said:
“The relationship of the believer with another believer is like (the bricks of) a building, each strengthens the other.” [Bukhari and Muslim]
And Nu’man Bin Bashir (RA) reported that the Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him) said:
“The believers in their mutual kindness, compassion and sympathy are just like one body. When one of the limbs suffers, the whole body responds to it with wakefulness and fever.” [Bukhari and Muslim]
Sahl Bin Sa’ad (RA) relates that Prophet (Peace be upon him) said:
“In the community of believers, a believer’s place is like that of the head in the human body. The whole body suffers due to headache, so the believer should feel the pain if others in (Muslim) community suffer.”
There is no doubt that Islam teaches sympathy, love, and promotes brotherhood, the spirit to help others in their hour of need. If a Believer (Mu’min) can not afford to buy food for his hungry brother, he should share his own meal with the hungry. That was the spirit of love, sacrifice and mutual concern which brought into being a love-woven society. Verse 103 of Surah Ali-Imran is a clear reminder to such a quality:
“Hold fast to Allah’s rope all together; do not split into factions. Remember Allah’s favour to you: you were enemies and then He brought your hearts together and you became brothers by His grace; you were about to fall into a pit of Fire and He saved you from it – in this way Allah makes His revelations clear to you so that you may be rightly guided.”
One thing should be remembered that the more we adhere to our faith and are firm in Tawhid i.e. the belief in Oneness of Allah Almighty, the more united will be the Muslim Ummah. We are distancing ourselves from the qualities of the early Muslims (As-Salafus-Salih). They were pure from jealousies, mutual rivalries, and envy. They never looked down upon their brother and never lashed their tongue with taunts or derogatory comments, but unfortunately we are afflicted with these vices. It is time to wake up to the realities of our faith and be aware of our rights and duties as a Muslim. Once a companion asked:
“O Messenger of Allah, who is the best among people?” Prophet (Peace be upon him) replied: “Truthful by tongue, pure and kind at heart, and without any burden of sins, the one who does not have grudge or envy towards others [is the best].” [Ibn Majah]
Respected servants of Allah! Here are the lists of some good qualities a believer has to follow if he want to succeed here and the hereafter:
1. Learn your religion as much as is needed, either by learning directly from scholars, reading books or by asking scholars.
2. Protect yourself from every kind of sin.
3. If sin is committed, immediately repent and ask forgiveness from Allah Almighty (Taubah).
4. Do not violate the rights of others; do not harm others by tongue or hand. Do not say negative things about others.
5. Do not keep the love of wealth and the desire of a “big name” in your heart, and do not excessively engage in seeking superior food and superior clothes.
6. If someone points out your mistake, do not argue, immediately accept it and repent from it.
7. Do not travel, except for a great need, as during travel you decrease in wariness and a lot of undesirable things happen, a lot of good deeds are missed, your daily routine of Zikr (remembrance of Allah) is interrupted and nothing happens on its proper time.
8. Do not laugh excessively and do not talk excessively, and take special care to avoid talking with strangers of the opposite gender (Ghair-mahram) frankly and freely.
9. Do not quarrel unnecessarily or argue with others.
10. Be aware of the orders of the Shari’ah in every moment of your life.
11. Do not be lazy for worship (Ibadah).
12. Spend most of the time alone in solitude.
13. If you have to mingle with others then be the most humble to others, serve others, and do not show pride.
14. And mingle minimally with the rich (especially the bad and criminal ones among them).
15. Stay away from the irreligious and ungodly person.
16. Do not find faults in others, do not have bad opinion about others, keep your eye on your own shortcomings and try to fix them.
17. Try to fulfill your prayers (Salah) in best possible way on the right time with full attentiveness.
18. Constantly remember your Lord either through tongue or heart, and do not let any time be wasted.
19. If you feel pleasure in remembering Allah, and you feel joy, then thank your Lord for this.
20. Be polite.
21. Organise a timetable for all your work, and thoroughly stick to it.
22. What ever loss, worry, sorrow, test or trial you come across, believe it is from Allah and do not worry about it and remind yourself that “I will get reward for this difficulty.”
23. Do not keep the accounts of worldly affairs in your heart and do not talk and discuss about worldly matters all the time; instead think about your Lord.
24. Benefit others as much as you can: either worldly benefit or religious benefit.
25. Do not decrease your food and drink to such a degree that it will make you sick; on the other hand do not increase it so much that it will make you lazy during worship (Ibadah).
26. Do not hope to get benefit/profit from other than Allah; do not let your thoughts wander such that you think “we might get benefit from so and so.”
27. Eagerly and restlessly seek your lord.
28. For a blessing either small or large, be thankful to your Lord for it, and do not be despaired by poverty.
29. Forgive the mistakes and faults of people under your authority.
30. Hide the faults of others, but if someone is trying to harm the society or harm someone, and you happen to know about it, then inform that person (i.e. the one who might get harmed).
31. Try to serve guests, travelers, the poor, scholars and the elderly.
32. Keep righteous company.
33. Fear your Lord all the time.
34. Remember death.
35. Ponder and go though the events of your day; if you remember a good deed, thank your Lord for it and if you remember a sin, seek repentance.
36. Do not tell lies on any condition.
37. Do not attend unlawful gatherings.
38. Live the life of modesty and forbearance.
39. Do not be proud.
Dear brothers and sisters! Please let us try as much as possible to inculcate the attributes of a true and sincere Believer (Mu’min)’s in us and then invite others to embrace them!
Lastly, I pray, may Allah Almighty enable us to realise the importance of the gift of life and the countless blessings we have been bestowed with and utilise our time prudently and wisely on the way it pleases Allah Almighty and His Messenger (Peace be upon him). Ameen!
All praise is due to Allah, the Lord of all creation; may Allah extol the mention of our noble Prophet Muhammad in the highest company of Angels, bless him and give him peace and security―and his family, his Companions and all those who follow him correctly and sincerely until the establishment of the Hour.
Murtadha Muhammad Gusau is the Chief Imam of Nagazi-Uvete Jumu’ah and the late Alhaji Abdur-Rahman Okene’s Mosques, Okene, Kogi State, Nigeria. He can be reached via: gusauimam@gmail.com or +2348038289761.
Friday, January 06, 2023 (Jumadal Akhirah 13, 1444 AH)
Prof. Abdalla Uba Adamu
Say what you can, but Kano has always been innovative. I am currently revising a book on the history of Hausa cinema for a publisher in the United States, so I want to share a few morsels of information that might be interest, and also give depth to the history of Hausa cinema in the light of the current (November 2023) real-life drama that is playing out in the industry.
What is known as Kannywood has an original name “Finafinan Hausa”. It professionally started in 1990, but amateurishly in 1980 when it was kickstarted by Sani Lamma and Hamisu Gurgu of Kano (more of them in subsequent postings). In 1990 it was the brain child of late Aminu Hassan Yakasai, supported by Aminu Hassan Yakasai, Ali “Kallamu” Muhammad Yakasai, Bashir Mudi Yakasai, and Tijjani Ibraheem. Their first film, 𝗧𝘂𝗿𝗺𝗶𝗻 𝗗𝗮𝗻𝘆𝗮, released in March 1990, was directed by Salisu Galadanci. This was the beginning of what is now known as Kannywood.
The halcyon Hausa cinema days were days of joy, fame and stardom. Two storylines dominated the films. The first focused on domestic ecology of Hausa marriages. This was led by Hamisu Iyantama group of Bohemian writers, including Ahmad Salihu Alkanawy, Khalid Musa, Bala Anas Babinlata, ruled the roost. Iyantama led the group – an easy thing for him to do since he remains the most innovative, experimental and charismatic filmmaker in the history of Kannywood. The first filmmaker to shoot inside the Supreme Court. A second layer of storylines was led by Ɗan Azumi Baba Cheɗiyar Ƴan Gurasa, dealing with urban sociology. No singing. No dancing. Just solid storyline that talks to you and your environment.
Media coverage of the new entertainment was covered by basically fanzines, that later became magazines, giving tidbits of the film industry. No one was making much money, but what they lack in money, they made up in instant recognition wherever they go. They were feted and sought as simple socialites. No airs and graces.
he transformation came in 1999. First, a magazine, Tauraruwa, founded by Sunusi Shehu Burhan, a writer, started a column he called ‘𝗞𝗮𝗻𝗻𝘆𝘄𝗼𝗼𝗱 – making him the first person to create the term. This was a revolutionary moment in African media history. It was the first time an film industry was collectively named. Kannywood was not meant to imitate Hollywood in film ethics. Indeed, it was more like Bollywood, because the magazine, Tauraruwa, cloned an Indian film magazine called Stardust.
The name was almost talismanic – it was certainly an auspicious beginning of the film industry. Unfortunately, it also paved the way to its future. In October 1999, Sarauniya films released Sangaya. It was undoubtedly the most iconic film of its period, and for the fourteen years, it opened the floodgates of Indian cloning of choreographed singing and dancing. This was radical departure from the more sober films of the 1990s. Arewa24, a Satellite TV with heavy dosage of TV Shows delivered in Series changed the landscape of Hausa cinema when it debuted in 2014. While the Series had a suspiciously ZeeWorld veneer, the storylines harked back at the pre-Sangaya narrative – thus making them less objectionable.
So, in 1990 Tumbin Giwa Drama group in Kano released Turming Danya. There was no video film industry as we know it then. Ola Balogun, Jab Adu, Moses Olayia, Eddie Ugboma and Hubert Ogunde were pioneering celluloid filmmakers. The southern Nigerian video film industry was born in 1992 with Living in Bondage. The term Kannywood was coined in 1999. No other film industry in Africa had any name. In 2002 Norimitsu Onishi of The New York Times coined ‘Nollywood to reflect the southern Nigerian video film industry.
Enjoy the scan of the first media mention of Kannywood in Hausa film industry.
“𝗪𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗮 𝗺𝗮𝗻 𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝗳 𝗞𝗮𝗻𝗼, 𝗵𝗲 𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝗳 𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗲”
Prof. Abdalla Uba Adamu
Is a Professor of media and cultural studies in Bayero University, Kano.
This was first published on his Facebook account.
By Abdulaziz Abdulaziz
It was pin drop silence. All heads turned to his side of the hall listening as the man gently, but firmly, made a case for his country to this crème de la crème of the Saudi Arabian economic bureaucracy and business community. He grabbed attention with an off the cuff speech that exuded confidence, authority, assurance and truthfulness. It was a little wonder his audience followed through and nodded all through!
The setting was the Saudi-Nigeria Business Summit and the speaker was President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. It was a forum held on the sidelines of the recent Saudi-Africa Summit held in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia.
President Tinubu went into the meeting hall at the JW Marriot Hotel in upscale Riyadh as the President of Nigeria. By the time he picked the microphone he quickly wore the garb of a chief salesman for a product he is excited to market.
It was an effortless exercise in sophisticated arts of marketing and advocacy. It was a presentation from the heart that was as unpretentious as it was unscripted. He spurned out the facts and the figures, reeled out the justifications and tickled the boardroom chiefs where it mattered without appearing weak or pitiable. It was a classic case of economic diplomacy and salesmanship at the highest level.
Since the beginning of his campaign for office, one of the most frequent words on his lips has been “prosperity”. President Tinubu is a prosperous man. His life is tinged with footsteps of prosperity, from the corporate world where he was a successful businessman to the prosperous political career that was capped with his election to the highest office in the land.
It had not always been rosy for him. He had told his story again and again to motivate the younger generation and inspire the country. He had toiled to reach the top. He knew the pains of want and starvation, and the sweetness that comes with economic liberation and prosperity. It is the latter that President Tinubu is desperately working to see that all Nigerians have tested.
He had the lifelong ambition to lead his fatherland. He has fulfilled this ambition. He could, if he chooses, stay back and enjoy the pecks that come with it and pass the time in office. But because the ambition was not a vain one, President Tinubu is up and doing. “I campaigned for it. I begged for the job. I even danced to get elected. There is no excuse!” That is his mindset and the philosophy of leadership for him, and it is for this mindset that he is willing to go to any length to ensure that he bequeath to Nigerians a prosperous country that everyone desires.
It was in his quest for this objective that the President chose to use his time in Riyadh to address the country’s top boardroom chiefs. It turned out to be not just another meeting or a boring address from just another President. It was dazzling interaction that stole the minds of almost everyone in the room, by their own admission.
“We came with high expectations but you have exceeded them,” said the Saudi minister of investment, Khalid Al Falih, who moderated the three-hour session, after the rousing applause that greeted President Tinubu’s address to the Saudi business community. The minister had in his welcome address spoke about how they had followed President Tinubu’s campaign promises and how he started off with the “boldest economic reform agenda in decades” for Nigeria, likening it to happenings in Saudi Arabia.
Mohammed Abunayyan, Chairman of Saudi’s ACWA Power confessed to being “inspired and motivated” by the President promising to see how his company can make foray into Nigeria. In the same vein, Abdulrahman Alfaqiq, the CEO of Saudi oil trading company, SABIC, promised to upscale their business relationship with Nigeria due to the assurances he got from the top. They were just a few of the many who spoke in glowing terms about the President and in optimistic sense of the new business environment being created by President Tinubu for domestic and international investors.
This was not the first time and certainly not the last. In September, the President’s participation at the G20 Summit in New Delhi, India, was a potpourri of achievements. He maximally used the time to network with the right people and seek out investments for Nigeria.
It was, in every sense, a bumper harvest for the country as the President came back with a basket full of goodies amounting to billions of dollars in investment pledges. Most of the commitments are in areas dear to the heart of the President and at centre of our quest for development. These include the $3 billion promised by Jindal Steels for iron ore processing to aid Nigeria’s drive for industrialization, Skippersells’ plan to invest $1.6 billion in the power sector by building 2000MW power plants across the country in 4 years, Indorama’s pledge for $8 billion expansion of their petrochemical facilities in Rivers State, a billion
dollars secured by the Defence Industry Corporation Of Nigeria (DICON),
among others.
The President’s last trip to Germany for the G20 Compact with Africa Summit also garnered as much fruits with the signing of the $500 million gas and renewable energy pact with the German government, among others.
As a young man, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu was trained as an accountant. He was a very good student, his records show, who finished from the Chigaco State University with flying colours. In the aftermath, he pursued strings of career opportunities in Accounting and Auditing. He left his job on his own volition and ventured into politics. But in his new job President Tinubu is demonstrating that beyond his training in Accountancy, as omo iyaloja he has imbibed not a few skills from his revered mother and notable businesswoman to apply in his bid to market Nigeria to investors and the larger international community.
Abdulaziz is Senior Special Assistant to the President on Print Media. He’s on X @AbdulFagge
Abdurrashid Hussain
In the corridors of Bayero University, Kano, two exceptional students from the Department of Chemical Engineering, Abdussalam Ojoshobo Adejo and Obeyemi Adebiyi, are shining examples of the transformative power of the MTN Scholarships.
Initiated by the MTN Foundation, these scholarships, have become a beacon of hope and opportunity for Bling students and those pursuing Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) courses across Nigerian universities, polytechnic and colleges of education.
MTN set up the Foundation in 2004, and commenced operation in 2005, with the goal to provides platforms and opportunities for their scholars to connect to their aspirations and realise their potential from which the nation will benefit.
MTN made it a point of duty to have youth development as a pillar for the Foundation, and one of the ways to express the commitment is through scholarship.
The Foundation Executive Secretary, Odunayo Sanya said “Till date we have given about 12,700 scholarships, expended the sum of N3 billion for indigent students who are science-based in the last ten years.”
Telling the success story, Abdussalam Adejo, currently in his fourth year of study, hails from Kogi State. His journey with the MTN scholarship began as a dream nurtured during his secondary school days.
Witnessing a senior student receive the prestigious scholarship at the Federal University Minna, Niger State, fueled Abdussalam’s determination to strive for academic excellence and secure the coveted award.
After completing his second year at the university, Abdussalam navigated the rigorous application process, ensuring he met the required Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) threshold of 3.5.
The competition, as he describes it, is fierce, with an estimated three thousand or more applicants annually from various institutions nationwide.
“Despite the competitiveness, I was lucky to be among the less than five hundred selected applicants,” Abdussalam adds.
Abdussalam’s dedication paid off, earning him a spot among the select few who received the scholarship in 2022.
“The offer comes with a payment of two hundred thousand Naira every semester from the year of award till your final year, and for you to renew that scholarship, it’s not an automatic payment; you have to maintain a certain CGPA of 3.5 above for the subsequent levels,” says Abdussalam.
Additionally, MTN sponsors specific courses, offering opportunities for students to enhance their skill sets without financial constraints.
“Some of those courses that we have taken open my eyes. I participated in an Internet of Things, I also took a course on cybersecurity, I took a course on soft skills development.
Basically, it has really contributed positively to my life, and I am happy to say that there has been a lot of improvement after the scholarship,” Abdussalam emphasizes.
Reflecting on the impact of the scholarship, Abdussalam attests to its life-changing nature. Financial burdens were alleviated, allowing him to focus on his academic pursuits and excel in his studies.
The scholarship served as a catalyst for personal growth, eliminating the need to seek financial support from his parents.
“Once you remove financial challenges from students, fifty percent of his problem has been taken care of,” Abdussalam states.
“It has been 80 to 90 percent motivation to my life both in academic and career growth,” he concludes.
He extends a heartfelt thank you to MTN for bringing smiles to the lives of students through the foundation’s commitment to education.
“I am happy to say that there has been a lot of improvement after the scholarship. I am grateful to MTN for putting smiles on the faces of students through the scholarship from MTN foundation.”
Obeyemi Adebiyi, another beneficiary from the Department of Chemical Engineering at Bayero University, shares a similar sentiment.
Originating from Osun State and residing in Jigawa, Obeyemi echoes the narrative of how the MTN scholarship has profoundly influenced his life.
“Actually, having the scholarship and been expose to the opportunities that has come with the scholarship, because for you to even renew your scholarship there is skills you need to obtain which you need to submit result of that skill, may be you take programming course you need to submit the certificate like at least two, which is part of the requirement.” Obeyemi stated.
“Now gaskiya, I am energise after the scholarship, I feel like sky is my limit, because I don’t have that monetary worry that will limit some of the I can do, it has been a life changing experience after the scholarship, I am super charge.” He emphasizes.
The MTN Foundation Scholarships continue to serve as catalysts for academic excellence, breaking barriers and fostering a brighter future for BLIND and STEM students in Nigeria.
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