By Muhammad Nasir
Sokoto, Nov. 2, 2021
The Shehu of Borno, Alhaji Abubakar Garbai, and four other distinguished personalities on Tuesday bagged the pioneer award of the Sokoto Caliphate.
The award, which was announced by the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar III, was part of the activities to commemorate the Sultan’s 15 years on the throne.
According to Abubakar III, the prize was initiated based on the contributions of the personalities toward sustaining the legacies of the Caliphate’s founding fathers.
“Today is a great day for all of us, as such we should thank the Almighty Allah for sparing our lives to witness this very important moment.
“We are using the period to initiate prizes to appreciate people who distinguish themselves with the good teachings of the Caliphate leaders,” he said.
The Sultan said the prizes include Shehu Usmanu Bn Fodiyo prize for leadership to Prof. Shehu Galadanchi, and Abdullahi Bn Fodiyo prize on Scholarship to late Sheikh Ahmad Lemu.
The Sultan Bello prize in good governance went to the Shehu of Borno, while the Nana Asma’u prize on Social development and Sultan Sa’ad prize in peace building was conferred on Prof. Sadiya Bello and Late Lateef Adeleke, respectively.
He assured of making the award an annual event in order to appreciate people who distinguished themselves with the act and teachings of the Caliphate, while calling on people to sustain more prayers for leaders.
Gov. Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto State appreciated the Sultan for his contributions to the development of the state, Nigeria, Islam and global community.
“He (Sultan) has distinguished himself as a leader who has been of great help to the development of peace and peaceful coexistence in the country,” said the governor.
He called on Nigerians to remain focused and emulate the lifestyle of the simplicity and hard work exemplified by the Sultan in the last 15 years of his stewardship for the benefit of the society.
Earlier the Chairman of the occasion and Shehu of Borno, thanked the Sultan for his kindness and leadership style, saying the distinguished character had yielded positive outcome in peace and unity in the country.
“As you are all aware, we are facing a lot of security challenges in the country most especially in our region the Northeast.
“However, with the coming of President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration the Boko Haram insurgency has drastically reduced.
“As such, we thank the President for his commitment in ensuring peace across the region and appeal for more dedication toward ending the security challenges in the country,” he said.
The Guest Speaker, Sheikh Mufty Ismael Menk, in his lecture, titled: “Religious understanding and tolerance for peaceful coexistence in the developing world,” urged Nigerian Muslims to sustain their commitment to Islam.
Menk called on the Muslim Ummah not to allow anybody to use them to fight one another or to fight people of other faith, adding that a society can only prosper when citizens live peacefully with one another.
