Day 1 – Thursday, 30th May, 2024: PUBLIC AWARENESS
This happened to be the first day of Jihad week 1444/1445AH.
The event started with the publicity process, where there were Muslim students from various levels and departments in participation. The convergence point was Anglomoz and our sisters and brothers shared fliers and spoke to students in different halls of residence such as Awo hall, Alumni hall, Moremi hall and others. The fliers were shared with the Non-Muslim students as well, after which our students met at and consequently departed from The Sport Complex of the University.
Day 2 – Friday, 31st May 2024: THE SPECIAL JUMU’AH SERVICE, THE AMEER’S CUP FINAL MATCH, AND THE SISTERS’ HANGOUT
It was a special three-in-one event for all the students.
The first event was, of course, the Special Jumu’ah Service. Afterwards, the match and the hangout were successfully conducted simultaneously.
The final match of Ameer’s cup, a tournament which had already kick-started before the beginning of Jihad week, surfaced on one of the school pitches. The match was between two Giant Faculties: Faculty of Administration and Faculty of Agriculture. The match ended on a draw score of 2:2, but a penalty kick handed the faculty of Administration the cup without conflict.
As for the Sisters’ hangout, almost two hundred sisters were in attendance. The event which took place at Central Mosque of Unity was themed Ere Omode, where our sisters were able to travel back to the good old days while still wearing their current ages on their heads like crowns. There were many games, interactions and heart-to-heart connection among our sisters. The likes of Ema weyin wo, Skipping rope, Chinko Chinko, Inter-house Qur’an competition, etc were played, and they consequently described the event to be an amazing one.
Day 3 – Saturday, 1st June, 2024: PROF. RAHAMAN INTER-TERTIARY INSTITUTION QUR’AN AND DEBATE COMPETITION.
On this day, MSSN OAU hosted its yearly Qur’an and Debate competition. Delegates from not less than fourteen schools were hosted. Some of the schools present include University of Ibadan, FUOYE, Crescent University, The Polytechnic Ibadan, etc.
The male category of the Qur’an competition was on 10 ajzaa with Tajwīd. It was a tough contest, but AlhamduliLlah, the greatness was reflected in Great Ife, as we took home the second position having been represented by Abdullah Ismail, a part 3 student of Civil Engineering. It is pertinent to state that Federal college of Education, Iwo, which was ably represented by Abdul Quduss Kataiyeyanjue and University of Ibadan, represented by AbdulQayum Abdulrazzaq took home first and third positions respectively.
For the female category, it was on 5 ajzaa. OAU was represented by Abdulhameed Muniroh, a part 2 student of Educational management, who, giving her Indomitable and unparalleled prowess, emerged the winner. University of Ibadan and University of Ilesa took the second and third positions home respectively.
Without bias, the winners in the male and female categories were awarded the sum of ₦200,000, ₦150,000 and ₦100,000 respectively. Other participants were also awarded with some cash prizes.
In the debate category, the topic was Social Media: a Distraction Or an Enrichment? Some universities supported while some opposed the motion with strong and weak points. However, some schools still managed to stand out.
Crescent University, OAU and FUOYE came first, second and third positions respectively and were awarded ₦100,000, ₦80,000 and ₦50,000 in order of these positions. Other participants were rewarded with some cash prizes as well.
The event which ended after Ishai was truly an engaging one.
Day 4 – Sunday, June 1, 2024: FORMAL OPENING CEREMONY
This was the themed event for 1444/1445 AH Jihad week.
The theme The Richness Of Time was what the day centered on. Is time really rich? What is rich in time? Is it about money or how time lost can never be retained? This topic was demystified by Engineer Qomorudeen.
The lecturer further emphasised this theme by rewarding punctuality at the event. The first three students to get to the event earned encouragingly huge amounts of money.
There were many attendees, including the schools who attended the Qur’an and Debate competition the previous day. Oduduwa Hall was filled with about one thousand six hundred attendees, non-Muslim students inclusive.
Several distinguished individuals in the society graced the occasion with their presence, including the former MSSN OAU executives who consequently made financial donations to the development of MSSN OAU. Students from various secondary schools in Ile-Ife were also present, and the entire programme proved to be an exploding success.
Day 5 – Monday, June 2, 2024: EVENING WITH A SCHOLAR.
The invited lecturer, Dr Ajijolakewu Kamaldeen, who was absent due to some unforeseen circumstances sent a mallam who brilliantly explored the topic, Islam and time: The point of intersection.
Why is MSSNOAU so concerned about time? This is because we are in the end of time. What a Muslim should during this period was laid out.
FAJ mosque managed to house the crowd of students. Indeed, they were interested in learning.
The event was a success and lasted more than 3 hours, when in fact just 2 hours was stipulated for the programme.
Day 6 – Tuesday, June 3, 2024: SINGLE’S CORNER.
On this day, Faj mosque was filled with students. People’s relationship status was cast on this day. Many students began to question one another that “So, you are single, too?”
The corner was not just for single people but everyone who wanted to learn the values of marriage. The topic, Marriage: A Journey, not a Destination was justified by our very own Marriage Counselor and Islamic Preacher, Ustādh Ibn Abdullah As Sudaisiy Al Iloori, the founder of Mawaddah concept, Ilorin.
The lecture was an eye opener for many of our brothers and sisters who are going into marriage and those that are in the institution already.
The lecturer discussed the high rate of divorce in the society and ways to avoid it. He gave tips on how to navigate the journey and how to classify it as a form of Ibādah. One of the takeaways was that we should be careful and calm while choosing our spouses, because although marriage is the best thing that can ever happen to someone, it could quickly become the worst if the spouse is wrong.
It was really an enlightening session and it lasted more than three hours, including the Q&A Session.
Day 7 – Wednesday, June 4, 2024- VISITATION TO CORRECTIONAL CENTRE.
This day was a day which the attendees were filled with emotional thoughts and tears. All I can say is that many of us really don’t know the blessings that reside in freedom.
Our esteemed Naibul Ameer (Islamic Affairs), Ustādh Aminullah, followed us as the lecturer. He delivered an emotional lecture which we all had a take home from.
Gifts such as food stuffs and beneficial books were donated to the inmates.
A total of 52 students were in attendance.
We ask Allah to grant the inmates Patience and faith to navigate this period of trial.
Day 8 – Friday, June 6, 2024- A NIGHT WITH CHIEF IMAM.
The night with The Chief Imam of OAU consequently turned to be an overnight with The Chief Imam.
The Chief Imam is a true representation and a standard figure of fatherhood. Who wouldn’t love to hear lectures from a distinguished Medical Practitioner who has spent about 50 years in OAU?
He narrated his experiences from his childhood to his adulthood, from his career and leadership roles to his marital and parenting lives.
One would expect few individuals in attendance for such a night, but the mosque was nearly full even before the Imam arrived. The proposed ending time was 9:00 p.m., but we ended up staying till some minutes to 12:00 a.m.
Our Spiritual Father exposed us to what led to the restriction of niqob usage by female students on campus and how the campus Musollahs were achieved. He spoke about the need for Muslim females in many occupational fields and encouraged us to strive for being at the top.
It was such a lovely night as we all sat with keen interest to listen and learn.
We ask Allah to preserve Our Father upon Khayr.
Day 9 – Saturday, June 7, 2024: SISTERS’ DAY.
Definitely, the brothers were jealous of the sisters, as two beautiful events—Sisters’ hangout and Sisters’ day—were specially dedicated to the sisters in this year’s Jihad week.
On this day, The Ameerah gave an emotional speech that proved how tasking leadership work can be. We pray that Allah rewards our Ameerah with goodness in both worlds.
The Sisters’ day was really a day of learning, unlearning and relearning.
We had in attendance eloquent and intelligent speakers. Among them was Dr. Mrs. Ameenah Adebayo Shittu, the wife of the former Minister of Communication in Nigeria, who delivered her lecture on Empowering elegance: Nurturing faith and Flourishing in Modernity. What an eloquent speaker she is!
We also had a Health Talk which was centered on Sexual harassment. Definitely, sexual harassment must be addressed these days as we have our sisters who are in Jilbaab and Niqob going through this traumatising experience in various forms without knowing how to handle it. The lecturer, Mrs. Khodijah, a graduate from the department of Psychology at the University of Ibadan, clarified and brilliantly discussed the topic. She also gave solutions and preventive measures against it.
In addition, there were two different sessions on Entrepreneurship, and the other programmes included Marriage talk, interludes, etc.
There was a kind of panel session for the marriage talk, and our own sisters were called upon to take the topic. One should have seen how they talked about marriage, as though it was a phase they were currently in. We ask Allah to grant them all good spouses.
The event was such a fruitful one. The mother of the event, Prof Mrs Durosinmi L.M was present , and she consequently took over from the MC before she left with guest lecturers.
We ask Allah to reward the organisers.
Day 10: Sunday, June 9, 2024: BUSINESS SUMMIT / HONOURS DAY
This was the closing chapter on this year’s Jihad Week.
It proved to be exciting, as the Lecturers were renowned entrepreneurs from different fields. These lecturers, in the persons of Prof. Abdulfatai Olusegun, Mr. Sherif Ademola Ayanleke, and Mr. Daud Sulaimon Abiola (Omo Alhaja), showed the students, in their respective presentations, the road that leads to success.
The event was wrapped up by presenting awards and certificates to members of the society who deserved to be honored.
Alhamdulillah!
Rodiyah Adesina
Masha’Allah. BaarakaLlahu feekum.
Aameen