By Seyifunmi Odunuga
The Speaker, Oyo State House of Assembly, Hon Adebo Ogundoyin said Nigeria’s present predicament is a test from Allah and it will soon end in joy and happiness.
The Speaker who stated this in his 2021 Eid-el-Kabir message said just as Allah surprised Prophet Ibrahim on the Mount of Arafat by replacing his son Ismail with a ram, Nigeria will soon be rid of its many challenges and it will be a success story at last.
He, therefore, urged Nigerians to continue to demonstrate strong faith and engage in more devotional and sacrificial acts saying Allah has promised ease after hardship and succour after tribulations.
“The story behind Eid-el-Kabir festival was one that demonstrated total obedience and submission to Allah. Prophet Ibrahim had already blindfolded his son Ismail and was already moving the knife up and down his neck but Allah replaced Ismail with a ram and his son was unharmed. I am sure another opportunity has presented itself for all of us in Nigeria to use this year’s Eid-el-Kabir to renew our faith in Allah. We should never lose hope in the sincere belief that all will be well with our nation soon. Prophet Ibrahim laughed and rejoiced at the end of his trial, we shall also live to see a better and more prosperous Nigeria which will be devoid of all the present crises. Oyo Speaker prayed.
According to him, Nigerians should imbibe other significant lessons of the Ileya festival like having and demonstrating strong piety and the act of sharing and caring for the needy.
“We should learn to extend love to ourselves all the time. During Eid-el-Kabir, meat and food are shared among ourselves and most importantly among the poor people. This will no doubt promote love, togetherness and peace amongst us. Let us remember that our meat and food do not get to Allah but our piety. We should constantly support the needy and the downtrodden amongst us so as to make life easier and meaningful for them too. ” Hon Ogundoyin counselled.
While calling on Islamic faithful and indeed all Nigerians to use this festival to pray for an end to insecurity across the country, the Speaker said the situation is more worrisome now than before.
He used the medium to specially felicitate the people of Oyo State as well as the teeming Muslims in Ibarapaland on this year’s Ileya festival and prayed to Allah to accept the sacrifice and the prayers of the entire Islamic faithful.
“Our people in Oyo State are already experiencing new lease of life. Special thanks to the people friendly policies of Governor Seyi Makinde. I want to urge the residents of the State to increase their prayers for this administration so that more developmental strides will be achieved,” he added.
