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Zakat: Kwarans call for NGOs, corporate bodies’ partnership with govt 

 

By Mumini AbdulKareem

Kwarans especially the senior citizens has urged well-meaning individuals, corporate bodies and Non-Governmental Organisations to emulate the Zakat and Sadaqat Foundation (ZSF) by partnering with the government to empower citizens with a view to banishing poverty from the society.
They made the plea at the 2018 Zakat distribution ceremony and project inauguration of ZSF in Ilorin, the Kwara State capital, where no fewer than 100 indigenes of the state benefitted from the disbursement of valuable items and cash.
ZSF is a non-profit organisation that specialises in collecting and administering Zakat and Sadaqah (compulsory and voluntary tax for charity) from the rich for onward distribution to the poor in line with Islamic injunction.
Speaking at the disbursement ceremony, the Executive Director of ZSF, Prince Sulyman Olaguniju commended the foundation for its laudable projects, adding that societal development should not be seen as the sole responsibility of the government.
“Poverty alleviation or eradication should not be abandoned to the government. ZSF must be commended for its persistence in good work, particularly in the renovation and provision of essential materials, drilling of boreholes to communities and empowerment of the downtrodden. The good job has continued despite government minimal encouragement due to economic downturn”, he added.
Also speaking at the event, a notable cleric, Alhaji Ahmed Maaruf urged Nigerians to embrace the use of charity as a veritable means to eradicate poverty and liberate the underprivileged.
He described giving of Zakat as sacrosanct in Islam and urged well-to-do Nigerians, particularly Muslims, to always pay the charity tax from their wealth, once it reaches the measure.
He also advised Muslims who are not capable of giving Zakat to give sadaqah (voluntary charity) to the underprivileged; especially those in their families and among friends, stressing that Allah shall reward everyone for their good deeds in this world and the hereafter.

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