Knowing what is right from what is wrong is beneficial to people because it makes them know that standing alone for the cause of something right is always an excellent and amazing thing. People don’t have to follow the crowd when they are advocating for beneficial and good issues. Even in Islam, it is said that Prophet Musa (عَلَيْهِ ٱلصَّلَاةُ وَٱلسَّلَامُ) didn’t follow the people/children of Israel (Bani Israil) when they were bathing nakedly in groups, except when the clothes he put on a stone moved on it’s own which made the people of Israel see his nudity, the author of the article heard this story from Mr. Ashraf Akintọla on one of his videos on TikTok when he was discussing rumors and how it can affect individuals. Another great example of this issue at hand is that of Prophet Ibrahim (عَلَيْهِ ٱلصَّلَاةُ وَٱلسَّلَامُ) who destroyed the idols being worshiped by his father because he was not polytheistic, unlike his family and people. According to an article titled Enjoining Right and Forbidding Wrong authored by Ibn Taimiya mentioned that “Allah said by way of description of Prophet Muhammad (صَلَّى ٱللَّٰهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ): [He orders them with that which is good and forbids them that which is bad. And he makes allowed for them which are clean and good, and forbids them which is unclean and detestable] (Quran 7: Al A’raaf (The Elevated Place), verse 157)” (Ibn Taimiya, 2005). The writer further stated that “And he said: [Believing men and believing women are the protecting friends of each other; they enjoin right and they forbid wrong; and you believe in Allah] (Quran 9: At Tawba (Repentance), verse 71). Allah explains in the above verse that this nation (Ummah) of Muhammad is the best nation for the people i.e. the most beneficial to them, the one doing them the greatest favor. This is because they constitute the total good and benefit for the people via their enjoining right and forbidding wrong both in quality and in quantity, since they enjoin all that is right and forbid all that is wrong, and the message is addressed to all people in the world. Allah narrates the following discussion between Musa and his followers: [O people, enter the sacred land which Allah has written for you, and do not turn on your heels to subsequently find yourselves in abject loss. They said, “O Musa, therein a belligerent people, and we will not enter it until they come out-if they come out, then we will enter it…”. They said: “O Musa, we will never enter it as long as they are in it, so you go.. you and your Lord will fight. We are going to sit right here.] (Quran 5: Al Maaida (The Food), verses 21-24” (Ibn Taimiya, 2005).
The author of this article would like to connect this matter to Nigerian political, educational, legal, medical systems and fraudulent actions as well as religious leaders.
Politics is a dirty game to be played as the writer of this article always hear her father say as he was a politician who studied Political Science before switching to Legal studies while in the university. The majority of the Nigerian politicians are criminals who steal the money meant for the civilians for themselves which is Haram (unlawful) in Islam. Political participants who can’t embezzle money for their own good and that of their family members’ should not delve into it because they would be pushed by their mates to engage in such. There are some political participants who do not intend to take the money meant for civilians for themselves, but because of the crowd they meet themselves, they have to, but if the political participant is unshaken, steadfast, and true to his words, he or she can never be pushed to pilfer money.
Education, they say, is the key to success but this idiom is becoming false in Nigerian society. The educational citadels to be discussed within this area are the polytechnics and universities because many of the lecturers there are corrupt in the sense that in order to excel in courses being taken, female students must pay monetarily or bodily, but if neither of that happens, they fail woefully. This is why some Nigerian females prefer to be artisans or date Yahoo Yahoo boys or use their bodies to get what they want (prostitution), and are they to be blamed? The glaring answer is NO because of the aforementioned reasons. Some lecturers do not behave in these aforementioned ways though, but as Yorubas say aguntan to ba baja rin a jẹ gbẹ in the English language means a good person mingling with the wrong crowd can become devilish as well. This is connected because the bad lecturers would influence the good one if he or she becomes intertwined with them.
Legal practitioners (Barristers, Judges, and Police) are in the society to protect the civilians by advocating for their rights and punishing the bad eggs in society. Yet, some of these professionals themselves are unprincipled because they are law breakers and bribery collectors. What do we say about a lawyer who collects bribery because his client comes from an affluent family background?; What do we say about a judge who because of huge amount of money giving to her give unruly judgment to an innocent individual to replace a young murderer who comes from a rich family?; What speaks well of a cop who arrested an innocent person to replace a criminal because of money given to him? Though, there are some decent attorneys, judges, and cops who would never collect bribery no matter what happens, and treat the cases brought to them justly and fairly. Are those not humans? Of course, they are, just that they have consciences, and fear repercussions, Allah’s judgments, death, as well as that of their wives and children’s reputations and also children’s lives. They also do not want to the wrath of Allah عَزَّ وَجَلَّ to be on them and their family members, even Yorubas say a bẹṣẹ baba wo de iran kejila which connotes to making the twelfth generation of an individual suffer for what the individual has done in the past in the English language, which these fair and just legal professionals do not want to come to actuality.
Fraudulent activities in Nigeria society are very rampant, especially Yahoo Yahoo boys, prostitution, armed robbery, ritualism, arson (burning of individuals and their properties), and kidnapping which is caused by the Nigerian political participants due to their (politicians) covetousness and thievery. Most of these things mentioned in this area are influenced by peer pressure and parents. Parents in the sense that most Nigerian parents don’t encourage education anymore since the polytechnics and universities are always going on the ASUU strike as well as imitation from other parents who have rich children taking good care of them, and wanting to brag to their friends and family members. Most of these young individuals do not want to engage in the actions stated here, but when parental and family burden as well as peer pressure are too much, when would they not engage in them? But, when the youngster is religiously and mentally fit, no pressure can be mounted on him/her.
Hospitals are meant to be visited by individuals when they fall sick or women who want to deliver their MINI THEMs, but what do we say of medical professionals (doctors, nurses, and matrons) who are involved in medical malpractice. It is very common in the Nigerian hospitals for matrons and nurses to swap babies and mislead the mothers to think the babies died because of money given to them by women or family in need of a child due to some reasons known to them only, doctors to abort unborn babies even when they know the women can die in that process or without fearing the fetus is an individual and can become someone great in his or her future or even swap babies and lie to the biological mothers that they lost the babies because of money. This should not be so because they all signed an oath not to commit medical malpractice. Though, some medical practitioners do not engage in all those aforementioned, but if care is not taken and they are not fit to stand their grounds, and get unwavering, they can follow the wrong crowd.
Religious clerics (Alfas and pastors) are to teach the religious tenets, and lead people right, yet most of them are behaving like thugs in the sense that they make use of jinns and fetish things as disguise. Some of these religious leaders have destroyed many marriages and family members’ interaction because of money and things they do not see that they claim to see. How can an Alfa say a mother is doing her son? This might be true, only God knows. But if it were true, must he be bold enough to tell the individual because the person would stay away from his mother or what is being explicitly stated by him? The author of this article would then like to propose a question which is why didn’t the mother murder you as a child when she could have? But no, she didn’t, she instead fed, clothed, and educated you to be who you are today. If you are not handsome, affluent, have a good job and/or literate, do you think you can see a woman who would want to marry you? Though as mentioned before, some women love men who have money, but some women don’t also care about materialistic items. How can a woman believe a pastor who tells her that her husband is behind her barrenness because he himself can’t have a child which he knows? Is that not absurd and foolish of her because only God gives children and he does when he wishes to. Additionally, was the pastor there when the man was being careless with his manhood. What irks the author of this article is that people who visit the so-called religious leaders are not prayerful, are careless, have no faith in God, and are believing people like them. Being a religious leader doesn’t mean he is knowledgeable and must be trusted as they are also human beings like all of us. Some of these clerics are truthful that the counterfeit ones have ruined all of them with their attitudes that most people see all religious leaders as thieves who are after what they would use to put food on their tables for their family members. No matter the situation, one would always know the truth from the lies with the way a truthful individual behaves.
Related:
Editors’ Picks
DONATE
https://selar.co/1rqb
For Advert Inquiries
Tele/+234 7036309859
E-mail: themuslimvoiceng@gmail.com
For News/Article
E-mail: themuslimvoiceng@gmail.com
