Ramadan: Why Zakat not working in Nigeria, by Ansar-Ud-Deen
The Ansar-Ud-Deen Society of Nigeria (ADSN) has said that Zakat (compulsory alms to the needy for those who are qualified to pay), is not having effect in the country due to ignorance and the refusal of the wealthy to fulfill their obligations. The Abuja Branch chairman of the organisation, Alhaji Abdur-Rasheed Oyetunji, said this […]
The Ansar-Ud-Deen Society of Nigeria (ADSN) has said that Zakat (compulsory alms to the needy for those who are qualified to pay), is not having effect in the country due to ignorance and the refusal of the wealthy to fulfill their obligations.
The Abuja Branch chairman of the organisation, Alhaji Abdur-Rasheed Oyetunji, said this yesterday when he led a delegation including the first Vice Chairman of the organisation and chairman of the 2018 Ramadan committee Alhaji Mohammed Kabir Olayiwola to the Corporate Headquarters of the Media Trust Limited in Abuja.
This visit was part of the organisation’s awareness for the 24th annual Ramadan lecture slated for Saturday at the Mosque premises, Maitama Abuja and also for its Food Bank programme.
“Despite some efforts, many are still not fully informed of the essence of zakat, which is the third pillar of Islam and which is 2.5 percent of the nisab (a minimum amount that a Muslim must have before being obliged to zakat). And this is why many of those obliged do not pay.
“If the institution of zakat is working in Nigeria, the society would not be witnessing the kind of poverty and the crisis we are witnessing in the country. This is similar to many of the wealthy who don’t pay tax, they rather negotiate tax and which goes into the wrong areas,” Oyetunji said.
He said that lack of adequate Corporate Social Responsibilities (CSRs) on the part of multinationals and corporate organisations also contributed to the state of the nation and that this was why they choose the theme for this year’s Ramadan Lecture as “Corporate Social Responsibility: Antidote to Insecurity and Poverty in Nigeria –Islamic Perspective” to be delivered by Sheik Muhyideen Ajani Bello.
The first Vice Chairman of the society and Chairman 2018 Ramadan Committee, Alhaji Kabir Olayiwola on his part said that if people are no longer hungry, the insecurity in the country will reduce, as poverty is the cause of insecurity.
He said that Islam considers CSR very important by making it a compulsory pillar out of five, using Zakat and that if Zakat is to be adequately collected and distributed efficiently, it will reduce poverty and insecurity in the country.