A Kaduna-based Christian cleric, Pastor Dr Yohanna Buru, has honoured Muslim scholar Sheikh Usman Mohammed Mai-Mota (Gwalli) for dedicating more than five decades to Islamic education and training thousands of young people.
Buru, General Overseer of Christ Evangelical and Life Intervention Ministry, led a delegation of Christian clerics to Sheikh Usman’s school, where they presented him with an award in recognition of his contribution to Islamic education and community development.
Speaking during the visit, Pastor Buru said the scholar had spent over 50 years teaching the Qur’an, Hadith, Tafsir, Arabic and other aspects of Islamic studies to children and youths from different parts of Northern Nigeria.
He said many of Sheikh Usman’s former students had gone on to become Islamic scholars, Arabic teachers and lecturers in schools, learning centres and other institutions across the country.
According to Buru, the recognition was aimed at encouraging the scholar to continue his educational work despite his advancing age.
“We came to honour him, appreciate his contribution and thank him for the service he has rendered to humanity through Islamic education,” Buru said.
The pastor added that the gesture was also intended to promote peaceful coexistence and strengthen relationships between Muslims and Christians in Kaduna State.
Buru, who was recognised during the United Nations World Interfaith Harmony Week in 2022, described Sheikh Usman’s contribution as significant, noting that his decades of teaching had helped produce generations of Islamic teachers and scholars.
The Christian delegation said available research indicated that Sheikh Usman had trained more than 10,000 youths, many of whom are now working as Arabic teachers, Islamic scholars and lecturers across Northern Nigeria.
Also speaking, Pastor Emmanuel John described the scholar’s contribution as remarkable, saying his commitment to educating young people had made a lasting impact.
“We came to commend his remarkable contribution and strengthen the relationship between Muslims and Christians, with the aim of promoting peace, unity and better understanding in the state,” he said.
Responding, Sheikh Usman expressed gratitude to the delegation, describing the honour as the first award he had received in more than 50 years of teaching.
He said he had spent decades teaching Arabic, Hadith, Qur’an and other Islamic studies, adding that more than 10,000 youths he trained were now teaching and lecturing at Islamic centres, schools and institutions across the 19 northern states.
The scholar said the recognition had renewed his commitment to continue educating young Muslims despite his advancing age.
“This is the first award I have received in my life for dedicating myself to educating youths who can today read and recite the Holy Qur’an,” he said.
Sheikh Usman also thanked the Christian clerics for the recognition and prayed for blessings upon them for their efforts to promote peace, mutual respect and understanding between Christians and Muslims.
