PAUL ORUDE BAUCHI
A Chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Bauchi State, Alhaji Aminu Muhammad Dan Malikin Bauchi, has commended Governor Bala Mohammed for eradicating the almajiri system.
Dan malikin Bauchi, a former member of the House of representatives (Bauchi Federal Constituency) gave the commendation in interview with Daily Sun in Bauchi, describing Almajiri practice as child abuse.
“I am indeed happy that Governor Bala Mohammed has taken a giant leaf towards eradicating this criminal act,” he stated.
“If others follow his good deeds, about 8.5 million children attending Islamic schools in Northern Nigeria will be saved from oppression and apparent slavery”.
The politician stated that the almajiri system is a form of child abuse that encourages parents to leave parental responsibilities to the attached Islamic school.
“The Hausa word Almajiri is derived from the Arabic word, “al-Muhajirun,” which refers to a person who migrated from his home in search of Islamic knowledge,” he said.
“The term has expanded to refer to any young person who begs on the streets and does not attend secular school.
“Almajirai are children, usually from poor rural backgrounds, who leave their communities to study Islamic learning with malams (teachers of the Quran).
“The malams do not receive salary but depend financially on the alms of the community and the work of the almajirai”
The APC chieftain explained that the almajirai usually begin their studies between the ages of 3 and 12, saying when not engaged in learning the Quran, those in rural areas may work on farms, while urban almajirai conduct small tasks like domestic chores, running errands, and fetching water.
“They practice alms begging out of necessity to eat since they have been abandoned by their parents. subjecting the children to begging, which was not originally part of the almajirai system, we have been widely denouncing the practice of alms begging which is a child abuse in Nigeria but shamelessly the governors in the north turned deaf ears,” he said.
“The almajiri system promotes youth poverty and delinquency, for failing to teach young boys vocational skills and thus making them unequipped for the workforce, and for radicalizing boys and making them perfect recruits for gangs and Boko Haram.It must be entirely abrogated”