UFUK Foundation’s Interfaith Iftar

Members of the diplomatic corps drove in to the hall canopy in their sleek black cars. Colourful posters of new ultra-modern Abuja based Nizamiye Hospital were displayed  at the entrance of the hall. This year’s Ramadan went so fast perhaps because there was no dull moment between the tafsir sessions and other Ramadan activities which […]

Members of the diplomatic corps drove in to the hall canopy in their sleek black cars. Colourful posters of new ultra-modern Abuja based Nizamiye Hospital were displayed  at the entrance of the hall. This year’s Ramadan went so fast perhaps because there was no dull moment between the tafsir sessions and other Ramadan activities which were quiet interesting and organized daily with predictable regularity. One activity that had a large turn-out in spite of the rainy weather was an iftar (breaking of the fast) dinner which was organized by the Ufuk Dialogue Foundation with support from Abuja-based Nizamiye Hospital.
Other Turkish educational insti-tutions and cultural, development and friendship groups turned up to grace the occasion. The iftar which held at the Congress Hall of Transcorp Hilton Abuja on 23 July 2013 was attended by dignitaries from all walks of life. Among them were senior government officials, members of the diplomatic corps, captains of industry, parliamentarians, religious leaders, traditional rulers, leaders of civil society groups and journalists. Some members of the Presidential Committee on Dialogue and Peaceful Resolution of Security Challenges in Northern Nigeria were also in attendance. The activity which was the second one organized by the foundation was titled 2nd Dialogue and Peace Iftar Dinner. The objective, according to the organisers was to ‘promote a culture of co-existence and mutual understanding and also improve dialogue between faiths, cultures and races’. In line with the foundation’s mission, the participants were drawn from across the faith community. Indeed the Foundation’s slogan is ‘Reserve in your heart, a seat for everyone.’ It brought friends and acquaintances together and some who had not met for quite some time sat in designated tables chatting and exchanging contact addresses.
When it was time to break the fast, one of the participants said the adhan (the call to evening prayer) which marked the end of the day’s fast. The Muslim participants trooped to a reserved space upstairs for congregational prayer and from there proceeded to serve themselves at a rich buffet dinner.
The Guest of Honour was the Vice President Architect Muham-mad Namadi Sambo. He was represented by his Special Adviser on Religious Affairs, Malam Tahir Umar Tahir, who read the vice president’s message. He explained that the vice president had wanted to attend the event but was also hosting an iftar dinner on the same day. In his speech, he commended the Ufuk Foundation for its bridge building projects that are designed to promote dialogue and peaceful co-existence among Nigerians.
A short documentary about the foundation’s work was shown to the audience. Since its establishment in 2011, the foundation has organised dialogue focused events such as the 1st Dialogue and Peace İftar dinner which held at the Transcorp Hilton in 2012, the Women and Social Responsibility Panel organized in collaboration with Daily Trust Newspaper which held on 18 May 2013at the Nigerian Turkish Nile University Hall in Abuja. Others are a media panel on reporting conflicts and seminar series on the African integration, growth and development.
The President of the UFUK Foundation, Mr Oguzhan Dirican, outlined the vision of his foundation which he said was founded in 2011 in Nigeria. ‘The mission is to foster interfaith and intercultural dialogue, stimulate thinking and exchange of opinions on supporting and fostering democracy and peace all over the world and to provide a common platform for education and information exchange.’
On the goal of the institution, Mr Dirican said the principal goal of Ufuk Dialogue Foundation is ‘to promote peace in the world and contribute to a peaceful coexistence of the adherents of different faiths, cultures, ethnicities and races.’
The organization is a non-partisan organization; however it supports activities in the good governance sector and all projects that contribute to better service to humanity, such as promoting conflict resolution within and between nations.  This translates to commitment to universal values of freedom, justice, democracy and the rights of all living beings. The foundation’s contribution to this universal aim consists of conferences, seminars, panel discussions, common projects, scholarships, publications, mee-tings, trips and several other activities.’
For visibility of its work and developing a commu-nication channel to its stakeholders particularly those who are beneficiaries, Ufuk Dialogue Foundation has invested in media development. It publishes a bi-monthly periodical the Fountain Magazine in Nigeria which is ‘an initiative magazine of science and spiritual thought. The publication explores life and our existence from a wide scholarship of humanities, natural sciences and perspectives on faith. It fills a void in the contemporary discourse on cultural perspectives of faith and science. Ufuk says it has no one particular agenda and no inherent ideology, other than ‘respect and genuine concern for the spiritual quality and welfare of life on this planet of ours.’
In appreciation of the role of the media in promoting development, Ufuk Foundation presented an award of recognition to two Abuja-based newspapers, the Daily Trust and Leadership, for their role in promoting diversity and peaceful co-existence in their news reporting. The award was collected by Malam Kabir Yusuf, the Chairman of Media Trust, and Mr Azubike Ishiekwene, the Editor-in-Chief of Leadership Newspapers. Both recipients thanked Ufuk Foundation for the award adding that it would encourage them to continue with their contribution to balanced reporting and promotion of factors that unite rather than divide the country.
Ufuk Dialogue Foundation has an interest in reaching grassroots because it ‘envisions a community in which people from all walks of life interact with each other and cooperate to serve their communities, thereby strengthening civil society and promoting the development of human values.’ It has reached out to community groups and stakeholders by inviting them to international intellectual and cultural activities where participants met and networked with others to share experiences. One of these was the Abant Platform dialogue which held at a picturesque mountain resort  in Bolu, Turkey, in June 2013. The global event was organized by the Journalists and Writers Foundation, an Ufuk partner. I had the privilege of participating in this enlightening forum along with three other participants from Nigeria.
They are Professor M. O. Faborode, former Vice Chancellor and current Secretary General of the Committee of Vice Chancellors of Nigerian Universities, Professor Tijjani Al Miskin of the University of Maiduguri, and Mr Sam Nda Isiah, the Chairman of Leadership Newspapers. It was a unifying and relaxing evening that most of us will remember for its interfaith and cultural bonding effect among participants.