Kenya@50: Muslims who have left a mark

Well past his retirement age, Ahmad continues with his passion in architecture. As Kenya marks 50 years of independence, his contribution to society cannot be overlooked 

BY THE NEW DAWN REPORTER

As Kenya celebrates 50 years of independence, little has been said or is being celebrated about Muslims’ contribution in this long journey into nationhood. This is in spite of the fact that Muslims’ achievements are still and will be felt for the better future of this country.

Take for instance Ahmad Suleiman Biringi a retired architect. From mosques to structures that dot many urban areas in Kenya including landmark buildings such as Nyayo House, they all bear his signature. That is not all; in London too, his work can be spotted in some buildings. Today, Ahmad, 73, looks back with a sense of fulfillment and satisfaction as he talks passionately about his work which he still engages in well past his retirement years.

A 1963 Royal College graduate now University of Nairobi, Ahmad received his first degree in architecture before landing his first job with the then Ministry of Works. “While working at the Ministry of Works, I oversaw the construction of Madrassa Al Falah in Kibra among others,” Ahmad proudly recalls.

It is while at the Ministry of Works that Ahmad mastered his skills in architecture such that he was a beneficiary of a 1971 technical exchange agreement between the Kenya and British governments. He got an opportunity to secure a postgraduate scholarship to learn advance building and construction at Thames Polytechnic School of Advanced Buildings.   

“That course lasted for 4 years and upon completion in 1974, I stayed in London for an additional two years. It is during this time that I made some contribution in constructing some structures that dot the British skyline,” says Ahmad.

When he came back to Kenya, Ahmad continued his work at the Ministry of Works in architecture which saw him traverse the country. “Being a Muslim, I felt I was fulfilling part of my religious obligation by using my skill towards designing better places of worship for fellow Muslims. Thus, I was involved in the initial design and construction of Imtiaz mosque next to Meridian Hotel in Nairobi, Makina mosque in Kibra, Laikipia Airbase mosque, Kiganjo Training College mosque and the Recruits Training Institute mosque among others.”

Currently Imtiaz mosque is about to undergo a major reconstruction.

Ahmad has not only been confined to designing mosques only but also several learning institutions. “Kibera Academy in Salama Estate in Kibera, Nairobi is among other notable institutions that are part of my work.”

When asked to comment about the current use of computer technology in architectural drawings, Ahmad observes; “I appreciate the use of modern technology and how it has made things simple, however, the old ways of doing things cannot just be wished away just yet. For example, designing and constructing detailed features such as minarets in oriental architecture have to be done the analogue (old) way.”  

As far as his work is concerned, Ahmad is proud to having contributed towards Kenya’s changing skyline.

In the 50 years of Kenya’s independence, Ahmad has also had a taste of different governments under former presidents Jomo Kenyatta, Daniel Arap Moi, Mwai Kibaki and presently Uhuru Kenyatta.

According to Ahmad’s assessment, it is former president Mwai Kibaki government and now Uhuru’s that have been favourable to Muslims. “Mwai Kibaki brought many notable Muslims to the fore during his reign. Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) chairman Issack Hassan is one such example. Now President Uhuru Kenyatta is carrying on with the same trend. He (Uhuru) has brought on board outstanding Muslim women personalities such as Foreign Secretary Amina Mohammed.” 

He attributes all these to the fact that Muslims have embarked on educating their children and he is happy about this trend. “10 years from now if the trend continues, we shall have Muslims well positioned in government,” he says.

On the future of Muslim youth in the country, Ahmad laments that the present environment in urban areas does not favour the Muslim youth. “Unlike our times, Muslim youth of today have embraced a lot of westernization and been blinded by short term ventures like drugs abuse instead pursuing more Islamic knowledge.” 

Ahmad’s story cannot end without posing the pertinent Nubian land question in Kibra and he says, “I am grateful to Allah for having given me an historical opportunity that is about to materialise and that is- Nubians finally getting a piece of land they can call their own. We have agitated for this piece of land for many generations and hope that President Uhuru Kenyatta will fulfill his promise by handing title deeds to Nubians.”

He acknowledges that 300 acres of land maybe not be enough for the Kibra Nubian community, but it will do.

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BY THE NEW DAWN REPORTER

No National celebration would be deemed complete without the enchanting and entertaining musical tunes played out by bands from various disciplines of the Kenyan Armed Forces. What you may not know is that even as these bands skillfully play their instruments to attentive crowds, their band master(s) may have been trained by one Yahya Sebit Salim. Indeed his contribution towards setting high band music standards among various armed forces bands both locally and internationally cannot be overlooked. 

An authority and pioneer in band music in the country, Yahya Salim, 85, is currently the band master cum mentor of Starehe Boys’ Center and School in Nairobi and is a retired Senior Superintendent (SSP) from Kenya Prisons where he worked in the same position for 24 years.

The New Dawn was privileged and humbled to talk to Yahya Salim as he revisits his achievements in his illustrious and colorful career as band master that took him places both locally and internationally making him brush shoulders with royalty and presidents among other distinguished personalities.

Born in 1928, Yahya’s enlistment into the King’s African Rifles (now Kenya Defense Forces) was purely out of coincidence. “Like any other young boys of our times, l used to go and play around Bulla Camp previously stationed opposite the present day Kenyatta Referral Hospital. Thus when recruitment began, I just found myself among those selected and trained to play music,” begins Yahya.

Back then in 1945 during his initial training, Yahya found it a boring routine just sitting down the whole day and scribbling music notes. Despite being a source of annoyance to his trainer, with time he got hold of it and enjoyed every moment. “We used to scribble musical notes on large pieces of wooden blocks days on end. At times, I contemplated on giving up but my instincts encouraged me to hold on,” says Yahya. However, this training was to be briefly interrupted when they were sent to war.

With the war having ended, Yahya was again at the camp and this time he caught eye of the colonial bandmaster in-charge who instantly paid keen attention on him as he seemed to grasp music easily and was talented. “By 1952, I had polished my musical skills such that I was seconded to go and train the Malawian, Zambian and Mauritius armed forces bands as a band master.” 

What Yahya noted during the training of such bands was that once he had established a band and it was doing well, a colonial band master would come in and take over. “The colonial bandmaster (s) would bask in glory as I was overlooked.”

Such discouragement and long absence from home made him homesick. “Despite calls from superiors to persevere in my assignment, I missed my country a lot and I wrote a letter purporting that my wife was not feeling well so that I could be transferred back home. Fortunately, I was granted permission to come back home in 1969,” recalls Yahya.    

No sooner had he landed home than he was told to choose joining either the Kenya Police or Kenya Prisons departments as prospective places of work.

Yahya opted for Kenya Prisons department and was instrumental in forming its first band. “With 270 people including 64 women, I was tasked by the then Commissioner of Prisons with the responsibility of training and putting up a professional band. Luckily he gave all the assistance I needed towards realising that dream,” he says.

With that, the famous Kenya Prisons Band was formed and he worked with them for over 24 years before retiring and heading to work at Starehe Boy’s Center and School where he is currently situated.

Despite his exploits locally, Yahya’s shining star caught eye of Queen Elizabeth who in 2005 invited him to England. “This was the turning point in my career because I had never imagined that one day I was to be a guest of the Queen. While in England, I visited many places not forgetting that I met and shared a few musical tips with renowned band leaders.”

At home today, Yahya Sebit can today be found relaxing with part of his treasured musical instruments that included brass plated trumpets, straight soprano saxophone, guitar and trombone just to mention but a few. “Some of these instruments are gifts from friends living abroad.”

Indeed they are priced possessions too because they do not come cheap. “The cheapest instrument can be bought at not less than KSh50,000,” says Yahya. 

On whether he is passing his musical skills to Muslim youth, Yahya laments; “They lack discipline, commitment and passion. However, I am always on the look-out for any promising talent to impart my skills.”

Sadly, according to confidential documents in the custody of The New Dawn issued by the Government of Kenya in 2012 nominating Yahya Sebit Salim for honours and awards for his illustrious career, he is yet to get any recognition for his contribution to the country even as we mark the Kenya@50 celebrations.

It is not yet too late to accord Yahya Sebit Salim a befitting honour! 

SOURCE...The New Dawn.

To develop Kibra, land rights of the Nubian community should first be granted and respected

BY SAADA ABDI

The Nubian community in Kibra will definitely keep their fingers crossed that the promise made by Jubilee government to give them a piece of land in Kibra will materialize.

President Uhuru Kenyatta, during his campaigns, promised to give the community title deeds so that they can transform the land from a slum to an economically productive land. Recently the Lands’ cabinet secretary Charity Ngilu visited Kibra to seek the Nubians’ and other residents’ permission to go ahead and fulfill the promise made by the President and issue the title.

Since October when the cabinet secretary Ngilu met with the residents and particularly the Nubian community and promised to have a title deed issued in the name of a trustee ownership, nothing has happened for the community. In fact it is the cabinet secretary who has been cornered to fight for her political life when the Parliament moved to censure her.

The title deed was supposed to be issued in two weeks after cabinet secretary Ngilu’s meeting with the Nubian community. It is now two months.

While some sections of Kenyans have termed President Kenyatta’s move to issue owners and squatters with title deeds, the government should not allow the politics of manipulation into the issue of lands which has always been emotive.

First of all the government should be commended for getting involved in the distribution of lands to owners and squatters who were at risk of losing their land. Residents of Coast province and other places who benefited from the lands programme can bear witness that President Kenyatta’s government is out to make things right.

But when the government gives a promise to do something within a specified time and then it does not do so, it only evokes a feeling of negligence, if not ignorance, to the residents who believe in such promise and look forward to its fulfillment.

In the case of the Nubian community in Kibra if the promise is not fulfilled as soon as possible it will only add to the perception that theirs is a discriminated tribe that is only remembered during political campaigns but forgotten as soon as a campaigner gets to the elective office.

Let us all remember that politicians near the Kibra constituency use the Nubians’ sufferings are political campaigns whenever it serves their political ambitions.

It is about time that the government helped in replacing slums with better housing and neighbourhoods. This cannot happen when the land on which a slum is built has no recognized and legal ownership because the government will be more in court that changing lives.

The slum upgrading programme in Kibra has at times been hitting a snag as some slumlords have ensured that the rickety tin and mud houses they rent to the poor are not demolished and replaced by the government.

It is only through a legal land ownership that the country can best achieve the Vision 2030 in time. Legal land ownership and title deeds will ensure that the real owners are in a position to develop their estates or parcels and that such lands are economically active.

To replace the biggest slum in Kenya with an economically viable district, the government will have to start with the Nubians and then bring other communities into the programme.

SOURCE-The New Dawn

Nubians celebrate rich culture at Bomas

It was all colour and pomp when two Nubian Cultural Ambassadors were unveiled in the Bomas of Kenya recently.

Koor Osman, a Kibera businessman, was named the male Nubian ambassador while Siyama Ismale was selected as his female counterpart during an event to mark the Nubian Cultural day.

Many said the event is significant because even after making Kenya their home, they still are treated as outsiders.

“At last the government has recognised us. We now feel proud to be Nubians with a place in Kenyan society,” said Mr Osman.

The two were taxed with the duty of promoting Nubian culture both locally and globally. They will expound on Nubian traditions, art , cuisine , fashion and other cultural aspects.

The Nubian community in Kenya is slightly over 100,000.

HISTORY OF NUBIANS IN KENYA

The first Nubians were brought to Kenya by British soldiers from the Nuba Mountains of Sudan in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

They served as soldiers and servants with some choosing to remain after the struggle was over.

They formed a large part of Kings African Rifles and fought on the British side in both world wars.

Osman and Siyama beat seven other contestants. They were well versed on the various aspects of Nubian culture and traditions.

Osman chose to talk about the attire of Nubian leaders, explaining the meaning and significance of every item of clothing and ornaments. He was very clear and informed on his subjects.

Musatafa Mahmood took the catwalk dressed as a medicine man along with his implements of trade. Adbu Aziz Abubakar displayed the attire of a young warrior.

Siyama, the winner in the women category, explained articulately many items of Nubian women dressing. She showed the clothes worn while performing everyday house chores, and for ceremonial occasions.

Osman has been promoting the cultural events, by organising traditional dances and other social events for the Nubians. His forefathers first settled in Eldama Ravine in 1891 before moving to Kibra (Nubian for bushy area) in 1904.

He says the community has done well to maintain their culture.


Neema Mohammed, Fatma Mohammed and Mariam Yusuf display Nubian Traditional plate during the Nubian Cultural Festival at the Bomas of Kenya on September 28, 2013. Photo/ANTHON Y NJAGI 

CULTURAL AMBASSADORS

Siyama is a social worker in Kibera and works as a volunteer with Community Housing, an American NGO, under the Tunaweza programme.

“As a cultural ambassador, I will promote women and the youth issues,’’ she said.

“We thank the Kenyan government for finally recognising us and our culture because a people’s culture is an integral part of their identity,’’ she added.

The two join others who have been identified by Bomas of Kenya as ambassadors for the Meru, Iteso, Taita and Taveta, Turkana, Samburu and Mijikenya communities.

The programme to identify ambassadors and celebrate various communities continues according to Bomas of Kenya General Manger Mr Quresh Ahmed.

During the event, members of the community gathered to celebrate their culture, traditions and art.

Foods, musical instruments farming tools, clothing and ornaments unique to the Nubian community were also on display. Nubian women traditionally dress in colourful, flowing dresses, which resemble Indian saris.

There was also a very insightful picture exhibition about the history of Nubians in Kenya.

Ranging from a shot of a 100 years, Nubians house still standing in Kibera, the gallery included shots of Nubians in the Kings African Rifles and their people in Kibera through the years.

Also unveiled in the Bomas event was a multi-windowed Nubian traditional hut. According to Bomas general manager Quresh Ahmed, the unveiling of the hut is an indication that Nubians are part of Kenya.

Story by ANTHONY NJAGI

SOURCE - http://www.nation.co.ke/lifestyle/lifestyle/Nubians-celebrate-rich-culture-at-Bomas/-/1214/2029480/-/m8gro2z/-/index.html 

Nubian community agrees to settle for 288 acres of Kibra land

By SAADA ABDI

The Nubian community has agreed to take 288 acres in Kibra as they wait to see how the government will compensate them for the loss of over 3800 acres.

The Nubian community has witnessed the 4100 acres of land which they initially owned in Kibra shrink as other communities move in to form the largest slum in Africa.

Lands cabinet secretary Charity Ngilu met with Nubian and other Kibra residents on September 30 and promised that a title deed will be drawn for 288 acres in trusteeship for the Nubians. The former Prime Minister and MP for Lang’ata which included Kibra is on record as having promised to give 300 acres to the small community.

“Don’t ask me about where the other land has gone,” Ngilu told the crowd at Kibra Day Academy ground. “But if you want to take the 288 acres give me a go ahead and I will proceed to register as a trust land.”

Kambi Nuru, Mashimoni, Makina and Lindi are among the villages that will fall in the trust land title.

Ngilu, who was not accompanied by any official from the National Land Commission (NLC), said that President Kenyatta’s administration was committed on its election campaign of transforming Kibra from slum to modern settlement.

Issa Abdulfaraj, the chairman of Nubian Council of Elders, asked all the residents to remain calm and avoid being taken by rumours as that would cause unnecessary tension.

“I would like to emphasise that we are one people,” said the elder. “We are all neighbours and help each other in time of trouble, which has been a Nubian custom.”

Mzee Abdulfaraj further said that Nubians everywhere in the country have lived with other communities peacefully.

It has not been clear how the government will compensate for the lost land but some Nubians are proposing that they be given land elsewhere. They also want the government to investigate the legality of how their land was given out and where issues of corruption and illegality are found, the land be restored to the community.

Source- The New Dawn.

Implementation of Constitution is saviour of Nubian Community

BY SAADA ABDI

The Nubian community wants to know what measures the government will take to ensure all the descendents of the community who have been living as stateless are registered as Kenyan citizens.

The community has also pleaded with the government to state the steps it will take to address the rights of Nubian land in Kibra which was originally granted to them by the British colonial government but has since been lost to other communities with the connivance of local administration.

Speaking during the Nubian professionals meeting held in Nairobi Ismail Ramadhan concentrated on the issue of economics and the identity of land as their resources on how it could be commercialised with the establishment of infrastructure and planning in order for the community to benefit.

But lack of land has become the biggest issue for Nubians who have lost over 4000 acres since Kenya’s independence from the British colony as the government either supported the loss of land or turned the other side when other people were on a land grabbing spree.

With only less than 700 acres remaining, most Nubians are living with the threat of evictions due to government’s upgrading programme where private houses are built and given out to people of other communities except Nubians. The growing Nubian population is not making things any better.

Nubians have been forced to live in semi-permanent houses in deplorable conditions because they lack security of tenure on their lands in the form title deeds, lack of water and other social amenities.

The community has been agitating for the their lost land and they not only want to know what the Uhuru Kenyatta government will do to restore this resource but also what measures the new government will take to include the marginalised community as citizens of Kenya.

Lawyer Vincent Ochieng told the meeting to that the solution to the land problem in Kibra lay in reading the Constitution, knowing of community’s rights and collecting evidence of dispossession. He advised the Nubians to take the available land and claim the rest through the Truth Justice and Reconciliation process.

History without evidence cannot work, he said, and added that the constitution does not clarify who the Nubian community is.

It is important for Nubian professionals to take their rightful position as advisers and resource persons.

The meeting came up with 10 recommendations to help the community including need for civic education , data collection with groups like Kenya Land Commission, engaging the ministry of lands and both county and national government among others strategies.

The Nubian professionals expressed optimism that with the new constitution their land rights will be restored especially with the help of area MP Hon. Ken Okoth who has promised to address the issue once and for all.

“We have a lot of faith in our Constitution and will cooperate and engage in it effectively to ensure that and agreeable solution is reached”, the Kibra MP told the professionals’ meeting.

Dr Asha Ibahim talked of need for frequent meetings to be effective at least once per month.

Source-The New Dawn.

Is Zakat really solving problems of the poor?

BY IDDI MUSYEMI

iddi@thenewdawn.info

The moment the Imam pronounced the second “asalaam aleykum” to mark the end of dhuhr prayers, he shot up with a plea for help.

“My brothers in Islam,” he said in a husky whisper. “My wife and children have not eaten in two days because I don’t have the means to support them. Kindly help me and Allah will bless you in this world and hereafter—Insha’Allah.”

Being lunch hour, he must have hoped that his Muslim brothers would understand his predicament and open their wallets to him.

But the congregation was unmoved by his appeal and kept busy in supplication.

For about a minute, the “beggar” stood in front of the seemingly unconcerned congregation confused, until the Imam asked him to step out and wait at the door where he would be lucky to receive some monetary tokens as the worshippers filed out of the mosque. 

Such scenes are common. A spot-check around various mosques in Nairobi reveals that many a “poor” people have turned to these worship centres to beg. Some even flock business premises or office blocks where philanthropic Muslims are known to operate from to either receive food rations or monetary handouts—for these people, begging has become a full time job.

But if there was ever a time Zakat-ul-Mal (alms-giving) was needed, this would be the time as economic hardships push more and more people, Muslims included, into poverty.

The question, therefore, is—is Zakat-ut-Mal achieving its purpose among Muslim communities?  This question is asked because there is a worrying trend where some Muslims are even abandoning Islam because of poverty—while others have resorted to illegal or immoral ventures just in order to eke out a living.

Ustadh Ali Ausat, a panelist on Iqra FM’s Bustani Ya Manufaa radio programme, acknowledges that poverty has become a big threat to the faith and steadfastness of many poor Muslims, blaming the exodus from Islam because of economic constraints to the fact that able Muslims have either abandoned paying Zakat-ul-Mal or perceive this third pillar of Islam as optional. 

He quotes the Quran: “Take, [O, Muhammad], from their wealth a charity by which you purify them and cause them increase, and invoke [Allah’s blessings] upon them. Indeed, your invocations are reassurance for them. And Allah is all Hearing and all Knowing.” Al-Tawba (9:103)

Many Muslim scholars have interpreted ‘charity’ in this verse to mean Zakat-ul-Mal, says Ustadh Ali, adding that apart from one fulfilling his obligation to Allah by paying alms, he or she purifies his possessions.

Zakat’ is the Arabic word for “purify.” According to Ustadh Ali, Zakat purifies one’s heart from miserliness and one’s wealth by giving out a portion of it. In return, one’s wealth grows abundantly by Allah’s blessings.

However, Muslims have somehow become tightfisted with Zakat-ul-Mal, thus denying millions of the poor and needy the duty of care that they deserve from their able brethren. 

Amina Abdallah, 45, runs a small business in Nairobi’s Kibera shanty dwelling where she cooks mahamri, bhajia and potato chips for sale to children in the area. She makes KSh1000 in a good month, which goes to paying her KSh1500 house rent per month for the single-roomed mud house; and fees for her two children Yassin, 12, and Twaha,3, who attend a makeshift school in the area.

“The money is never enough but if I can earn at least KSh5000 a month, I would be able to run my business comfortably and live on it,” says Amina.

In Kakamega, Fatuma Musalia Makokha, a widow aged 62, lives with her four children and five grandchildren in Musonga village. After her husband died in 2009, she is solely responsible for the family’s upkeep on  a KSh500 budget.

“That is all I depend on even in the toughest of times,” says the elderly mother.

If these two mothers wished, they would have joined the begging queues around local mosques. But they have demonstrated a willingness to do something for themselves.

“If Muslims paid their Zakat-ul-Mal the way it was intended to be paid, there would be no Muslims suffering in silence or going around begging,” says Ustadh Ali.

According to ustadh Yusuf Nasur, an Imam and community activist in Kibra, the problem with Muslims is misplaced priorities.

“If Muslim business people can pay millions of shillings of their income to the tax authorities, then they should surely be able to pay 2.5 per cent of their income to Zakat,” he argues.

Ustadh Yusuf adds: “Making people queue to receive KSh500 the way many wealthy Muslims do around Nairobi is not Zakat—that amounts to sadaka.  But there is a difference between sadaka and zakat and the two are not interchangeable.”

Moving forward, Ustadh Yusuf says that if Kenyan Muslims could establish an institution to collect and allocate Zakat the way it is prescribed in Islamic teachings, the community would have achieve a lot in  empowering the poor and needy thereby responding effectively to the challenge of poverty that is causing some Muslims to abandon their faith.

“Muslims, especially women and youth, have been forced to go to interest-charging financial institutions to seek loans for their businesses or putting up homes because they lack financial support from within Islam,” says Ustadh Yusuf. 

And this is why Muslims are not making any progress compared to their non-Muslim counterparts because of Allah’s displeasure with Muslims who associate themselves with interest-charging financial transactions.

However, there are some Muslims who give their Zakat to institutions that distribute it on their behalf. Abdulghafur, a Nairobi resident, says his Zakat goes to an Islamic institution whose identity he did not want revealed.  

He says that he chose to channel his Zakat to a credible institution because previously he would give individuals a substantial amount of money whose proper use he is not able to vouch for.  “Some people whom I gave Zakat have come back as beggars,” says Abdulghafur, adding that many of such people lack the capacity to handle substantial amounts of money or have no experience to run a successful business.

Young Muslim Association (YMA) is a widely known and respected institution that collects Zakat in Kenya. Abdullahi Wesamba, Youth and Daawah officer at YMA, says that they have been receiving Zakat-ul-Mal but not from many people.

  

“We collect Zakat-ut-Mal from only ten out of 100 people,” he says. “But we collect more Zakat-ul-Fitr during Ramadhan than we collect Zakat-ul-Mal in a year.”

The money collected is used to maintain an orphanage run by YMA in Garissa, building mosques and paying supplementary allowances for madrassa and Islamic Religious Education teachers.

In other parts of the world, Zakat-ul-Mal and sadaka have proved to be effective financial assistance institutions because of the way they are managed.

Zakat Foundation of American (ZFA), an Islamic charity organisation, has an active presence in western Kenya. According to Mohammed Wangusi, ZFA’s regional representative in East Africa, the organisation depends on Zakat and Sadaka collected from around the world and in turn used to empower poor communities locally and internationally.

“We give grants to self-sustaining projects and programmes aimed at improving social and economic lives of the most vulnerable and needy communities,” says Wangusi.

In view of the challenges facing poor Muslim communities in Kenya, there is need for Muslim scholars, Imams and media to campaign for both the material wellbeing of the faithful just the way they push for their spiritual wellbeing. For the material wellbeing of poor and needy Muslims, the proper management of Zakat cannot be gainsaid. 

Soruce- The New Dawn