- Governor Bala donates N25m scholarships to winners
- Sultan to sponsored Bauchi girl up to university
Borno and Zamfara states have emerged overall winners of this year’s National Qur’anic recitation competition in male and female categories.
The overall winner in the male category is Abba Muhktar from Borno state, who took part in 60 hizbs of the Quran with Tafsir went home with N3 million.
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In the female category, 18-year-old Haulatu Ishaq from Zamfara State, won the 60 hizbs of the Quran with Tafsir, went home with N3 million.
Musa Ahmed from Borno State and Fatima Sani, in the male and female category, both recited 60 portions of the Quran without Tafsir and went home with N2 million each.
Speaking at the closing ceremony of the event which held in Bauchi, Governor Senator Bala Mohammed donated scholarship to the 10 winners, and N25m cash to10 winners, participants and judges of the 36th National Quranic Recitation Competition.
Governor Bala announced the donation today at the closing ceremony of the one-week long competition at the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa Stadium, Bauchi.
He said “I will give all those 328 people that have come, women and men N10 million. Those who won will also be given N10 million and the judges, N5 million.
“This is to say that we appreciate and that everybody is a winner and the government award scholarships to the 10 male and female winners up to university level.
He said, “I am highly touched by the young people who came here and even by the attitude of the Sultan who defied the weather and all the emirs and Ulamas who spent nine days with just little that we gave but they have been able to do so much.
“We have winners but there are no losers. So, as a state we want to do more; those who came here for competition, I’m going to give them a token reward just to show them that I appreciate them because, without them, there won’t be any competition.
“And I was discussing with the Sultan and my government, what do we do? In consonance with what the guest speaker said to deepen knowledge and conquer our environment, to be in tune with time and place, what we can only do is to give education.
“Therefore, all those who won the competition here, Bauchi State Government is going to give them free scholarships up to the university.”
He also offered a scholarship to the university level to Aisha Usman, from Cross River State for being the youngest participant in this year’s event.
Governor Bala’s donation is not part of the N100 million earlier released to the local Organising Committee by the Bauchi State Government to assist them in organising the event.
The Sultan of Sokoto Alhaji Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar III, announced a scholarship award to one Aisha from Bauchi State for impressing him in the recitation of the Quran.
“When I heard that somebody was so moved at the little girl who recited the holy Quran for us here, that he shed tears and he brought out N10,000 crisp notes to be given to her. I wondered what that N10,000 would do to her. I have adopted this girl. Summaiya will be Sultan’s student until she gets her degree in the university.
“I was also told that one Christian man was so impressed with her and gave her N5,000, that’s the spirit of peaceful coexistence. By Monday, we will be having our Inter-Religious Council Meeting and I think these are ways we should foster unity and relationship between Christians and Muslims in this country.
“I want to assure you that we will not be dragged into a religious war in this country, as long as we are leaders,” he declared.
