By Ebrima G. Sankareh, Editor-in-Chief
The Imam Ratib of The West African state of The Gambia, Imam Cherno Kah has called on Gambians in the Diaspora to respect and honour every facet of their marriage life as instructed by the Holy Quran and the Prophet Mohammed. “Marriage is the most important Covenant among humans, it is the most basic yet, most cardinal contract among us and its significance lies in its result; the procreation of off springs whose molding and nurturing is our ultimate responsibility” he told a large crowd of Senegambian Muslims Saturday night in Raleigh, North Carolina. The Imam who was Chief Guest of Honour at the annual Raleigh Gamo- (birthday celebrations of the Prophet Mohammed), reminded Muslims that trust, honesty and loyalty were the bedrocks of all successful marriages and urged his followers to always reflect on these principles. “Our men should be kind and responsible towards their wives and our women should in turn be respectful and loving towards their husbands so that our children and grandchildren will be better leaders tomorrow” he told the crowd. The Imam praised Sene-Gambian women for their significant strides towards the betterment of our people. “Across the spectrum, our women (Gambian and Senegalese) are always in the forefront and one wonders if anything will ever succeed in our sub-region without our great women folk?” the Imam told the gathering.
King Faqhad Mosque in Banjul Is Imam Kah's place of worship
Turning to our general attitude towards work, Imam Kah gave a dismal picture. “Many a time, you would see men and women idling about from office to office talking about irrelevant personal matters when the people in those offices have important state matters to attend to. In some instances, you have people brewing Chinese green tea (Ataya) as if though our offices were meant for idle talk,” lamented Imam Kah. This according to Imam Kah constitutes great indiscipline, is highly un-Islamic and antithetical to the teachings of the Holy Quran and the Prophet Mohammed whose birthday was being observed. “Since you live in the United States, there are numerous examples of Western culture that you can inculcate in yourselves and your children, especially, the Protestant work ethic and your interpersonal relations with your fellow human beings-respect your work, respect the law, and be committed to your family and community duties for the betterment of all mankind” he admonished the Diasporans. The Imam expressed outraged at what he called “total aimlessness among people who malinger from one household to the other and from one office to the other looking for crowds of Ataya drinkers, talking rubbish from dawn to dusk.” “I want to make it categorically clear that the great soul, the Prophet Mohammed, whose legacy we now celebrate did not like this and we should therefore, not encourage it among ourselves” he said. Imam Kah forcefully argued that, a good Muslim should be hard working, honest and kind as was always exemplified by the Prophet Mohammed.
Speaking earlier, Imam Bai Secka of Atlanta told the gathering to always show discipline towards others as discipline was a precious commodity lack of which could lead people to go astray. Imam Secka urged the crowd to show their unwavering respect for Imam Kah since as Imam Ratib of Banjul, he was the principal imam of all Gambian Imams.
The scholar and eloquent preacher, Imam Modou Lamin Bah who accompanied Imam Kah reiterated the significance of honesty and trust among families. Discipline said Imam Bah was a sine qua non to a progressive society and malice and hatred were a great bane to progress he argued. He praised Imam Cherno Kah for his wisdom, knowledge and calm demeanor that make him the shinning bulb that he is.
Several other speakers among them, Raleigh’s Imam Amadou Kanteh echoed similar sentiments urging Senegambian Muslims to always maintain a culture of dialogue and love. Imam Essa Sillah of Florida, Imam Cherno Lama Barry of Maryland, numerous other Islamic scholars from among the states were in attendance. The Gamo that lasted the whole night was interspersed with moving Islamic recitations and poetry by prominent disciples like Ebou Secka, Macumba Cham, Laye Ngom, Gibou Jagne, Ebrima Malik Gaye, Saul George, Teejan Mbye and Alhaji Mbaye. Alhaji Mustapha Ngom, a personal Secretary and long-time friend of the Imam Ratib as well as the Imam’s wife, Aja Binta Njie Kah graced the auspicious occasion. Lawyer Ousman Sillah and Uncle Sulayman Jobe were given the fitting recognition of prominent senior citizens of the Senegambian Community resident in Raleigh.