Let’s emulate the legacy of Asian Muslim community- Abu Najma

Muslims have been urged to emulate the efforts and sacrifices made by the Asian community towards the spiritual and social development of Muslims in the country.

In his Friday sermon at Park Road mosque, Nairobi, Sheikh Abu Najma Rashid Muiruri paid accolades to the community for its role in positively shaping development and social progress of Muslims, saying that they have left lasting legacies that continue to benefit Muslims in the country.

Though they came to the country as workers to construct the Uganda Railway at the end of the last century, he said their primary focus was establishing mosques and Islamic centres along the corridors of the railway line, furthering the cause of da’wah (Islamic propagation) in the interior.

“They came all the way from India and Pakistan, and through difficult struggles, they sacrificed resources to ensure that mosques and Islamic schools were established to serve the nascent Muslim population,” he said.

“Today, mosques such as Jamia, Landhies and Park Road serve as a testimony to their efforts to support the spiritual welfare of Muslims in the country,” he added.

Asian Muslims were instrumental in the construction of the Kenya-Uganda Railway in the late 1800s, coming from British India as labourers and later establishing communities and businesses across East Africa.

Makindu Jamia Mosque

In most of the major towns in the country, from the Indian Ocean coastline to the shores of Lake Victoria and other towns in the country, the migrant workers established mosques and madrasas which have remained among the most important centres of Islamic heritage in the country.

Sheikh Abu Najma who is a former Imam and chaplain of the Kenyatta National Hospital, further urged Muslims to support programmes aimed at the construction of mosques and Islamic institutions, particularly madrasas saying that they play a critical role in the social and religious advancement of Muslims. “When Jamia mosque was built over 100 years ago, it used to serve a few people, but now, besides providing space for thousands of worshippers, it is playing a crucial role in the social development of Muslims in the country,” he said.

In his sermon, he also praised the ceasefire reached recently by Hamas and the Zionist entity, saying that it foretells lasting peace and the eventual end of the occupation of Palestine from the yoke of Israeli imperialism and colonialism.

More so, he urged Kenyans to continue their support towards the people of Palestine, stressing that the momentum shown recently when millions of shillings were raised for the people of Gaza should be increased. “Now that the borders are open, allowing for humanitarian aid to flow into Gaza, let us intensify our support towards our brothers and sisters through dua (supplications) and financial assistance, which will be used to purchase essential items such as food and medicine,” he said.