By Hassana Yakubu
A coalition of Islamic clerics and organisations in Kaduna State has endorsed the ministerial nomination of former Gov. Nasir El Rufai, saying he will be one of the best ministers the country has ever produced.
Consequently, the coalition has asked the Senate to confirm El-Rufai as minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
Speaking with newsmen on behalf of a total of 105 Islamic organisations and 87 Qur’anic schools in Kaduna on Tuesday, Imam Nasir Shamwilu Nasir, commended El-Rufai for doing his best to improve Qur’anic education in the state while in office.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) report that the coalition’s position was sequel to call by a coalition of Qur’anic reciters, memorisers and learners in Bauchi to President Bola Tinubu to remove El-Rufai’s name from his ministerial list.
Shamwilu noted that since the Bauchi clerics were not residing in Kaduna, they were not privy to what the former governor had done to enhance Qur’anic education in the state.
Quoting from the Qur’an, he said that the clerics should verify any allegation brought before them before taking a stand.
Shamwilu said that what El-Rufai did to enhance Quránic education was unprecedented in the history of Nigeria, recalling that he set up a committee to mainstream Quránic education.
He said that the committee fashioned out a curriculum to enable Alaramas or Islamic clerics, who had memorised the Qurán, to obtain a National Certificate of Education (NCE) after two or three years of studying some secular subjects.
Shamwilu recalled how stakeholders in education sector, including the State Universal Basic Education Board, State Schools Quality Assurance Authority, National Board for Arabic and Islamic Studies and National Commission for Colleges of Education, had developed a suitable curriculum for the programme.
According to him, the curriculum has been designed in such a way that Islamic clerics can be gainfully employed in any government agency and even study up to degree and post-graduate levels.
The spokesman said that other states had started adopting the curriculum, which was launched at Jam’atu Nasril Islam, where stakeholders in education sector across the country were present, with an award given to El-Rufai by 87 Quránic organisations.
He expressed the confidence that the former governor would be one of the best ministers in Nigeria because of his innovation and pro-activeness. (NAN)
