By Kemi Kasumu, General Editor
All Muslims of Nigeria are therefore expected to hook up to the Nigeria Television Authority (NTA) particularly and, in the case of this one, log on to The DEFENDER Online Media via www.thedefenderngr.com for the news they need to either commence their fast tomorrow Thursday May 17th or count Sha’ban to 30 and begin fast on Friday May 18th depending on the outcome this Wednesday night activity of the moonsighting committees.
The search for new moon of Ramadan 1439AH has commenced across Nigeria.
Sultan of Sokoto and President-General, Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA), since Monday Sha’ban 27, equivalent of May 14, had directed Muslims in the country to search for the new moon on Wednesday being the 29th of Sha’ban 1439AH.
The DEFENDER is on ground in Sokoto and its team will partake in this year’s search for the all-important new Ramadan moon along with members of the Sultanate Council Moonsighting Committee who will also have some members of the National Moonsighting Committee working with them, although other members of National Moonsighting Committee are handing on in Lagos, Ibadan, Abuja, Port Harcourt, Maiduguri, Ilorin awaiting the news from the Palace in Sokoto for onward passage to the rest of Nigerian Muslims before midnight to be aware of what the outcome of the search is. Federal and States governments are also awaiting same information to enable them take decisions.
The Sultan is on ground in the Palace and has been busy since the day break of this Wednesday giving instructions and making arrangements that Nigerian Muslim Ummah will never be misled in matter of their religion.
The new moon appears in form of a crescent and will begin to appear from precisely the sunset.
Each of the members of the search teams has a guideline printed out for him. The DEFENDER team has its own. And in the guideline is quoted some Qur’anic verses backing the work of the Deen that is being embarked upon and some Hadeeth of the Prophet peace be upon him.
The guideline also has the various clock equivalents of sunset in major parts of Nigeria: Sunset in Sokoto today will be 6.57pm, Lagos will be 6.56pm, Maiduguri will 6.24pm among others.
That is the time that people in respective parts of the country where the search for new moon of Islamic lunar months particularly this Ramadan will begin to be on the lookout for the new crescent.
The culture in the Sultan Palace Sokoto where the information from all over Nigeria will be coordinated, received, processed and disseminated via the print, broadcast and online media in the country, is that there will be no side announcement even by any member of the teams of searchers until after the various information have been submitted to the consortium of the moonsighting committees, who will process and sent their reports to the Sultan, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar III, who will then issue his statement and address the Press Conference of Journalists who will have been waiting at the Palace from immediately after sunset to take the very vital message to the rest of Nigerians.
All Muslims of Nigeria are therefore expected to hook up to the Nigeria Television Authority (NTA) particularly and, in the case of this one, log on to The DEFENDER Online Media via www.thedefenderngr.com for the news they need to either commence their fast tomorrow Thursday May 17th or count Sha’ban to 30 and begin fast on Friday May 18th depending on the outcome this Wednesday night activity of the moonsighting committees.
