25/08/2026
PRESS RELEASE
Tuesday, 25th August 2026 (12 Rabi'ul-Awwal 1448 AH)
MAWLID AND THE NIGERIAN NATION: MLA CALLS FOR A DAY OF REST, REFLECTION, RENEWED GOVERNANCE MODEL BUILT ON VIRTUE
The Muslim Lecturers' Association (MLA), Nigeria, warmly commends the Federal Government's declaration of today, Tuesday, 25th August 2026 (12 Rabi'ul-Awwal, 1448 AH), as a public holiday marking the birth (Mawlid) of Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). We extend felicitations to all Nigerians — Muslims and non-Muslims alike — and enjoin civil servants and citizens nationwide to embrace today not merely as a break from work, but as a deliberate, restful pause for sober reflection on a life whose example remains the most complete blueprint for personal conduct, leadership and nation-building ever given to humanity.
On this memorable day, MLA advises all civil servants to disengage fully from official pressures today, rest their bodies, and turn their minds to the life-history of the Prophet - a man who rose from an orphan of Makkah to the most trusted statesman not only of Arabia, but ranking as the most successful leader globally as empirically documented by Michael H. Hart (1978) in his book, "The 100: A Ranking of the Most Influential Persons in History". He left behind not monuments of gold but a civilisation built on justice, mercy and accountability.
It is on this note that for the growth and development of Nigerian, both the leaders and the led must emulate Prophet Muhammad’s striking characters:
● Truthfulness and Trustworthiness (Sidq and Amanah): Known as Al-Amin before prophethood, he handled others' wealth so scrupulously that even his fiercest opponents entrusted him with their valuables. Nigeria's leadership crisis is, at its root, a crisis of trust - public office treated as personal entitlement rather than sacred trust.
● Justice Without Favour (Adl): He declared that even if his own daughter Fatimah stole, he would enforce the law against her. A justice system and leadership class that spare the powerful while crushing the poor stand indicted by this single standard.
● Consultation and Accountable Leadership (Shura): He consulted his companions before major decisions, including at Badr and Uhud, and Caliph Umar ibn Al-Khattab literally patrolled Madinah's streets at night to personally verify that no household went hungry under his watch. Nigerian leaders at every tier need this same walked-out, felt accountability - not press-release governance.
● Compassion and Welfare of the Vulnerable (Rahmah): The institution of Zakat he established was a structured, obligatory wealth-transfer from the rich to the poor - so effective that under Caliph Umar ibn Abdul-Aziz, within roughly two years, poverty was so reduced that officials struggled to find eligible Zakat recipients. This is a direct historical answer to today's hunger and economic hardship: deliberate, disciplined redistribution, not sporadic, politicised palliative and empowerments.
● Prohibition of Exploitative Hoarding (Ihtikar): The Prophet explicitly condemned hoarding goods to artificially inflate prices, declaring such a trader a sinner. This is a precise prophetic verdict on Nigeria's skyrocketing fuel and market prices, which are worsened by hoarding, sharp practice and profiteering along the supply chain - a matter of conscience, not just policy.
● Strategic, Patient Handling of Insecurity: Rather than react in anger, the Prophet signed the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah, absorbing short-term humiliation for long-term peace, and forged the Mu'akhat brotherhood-pact binding Makkan migrants (Muhajirun) to Madinan hosts (Ansar), a bilateral pact built on faith facilitating sharing wealth and shelter to stabilise a fragile new society. Nigeria's insecurity - banditry, kidnapping, herder-farmer conflict - needs this same blend of firm strategy and genuine socioeconomic integration, not force alone.
● Youth Empowerment Against Delinquency: The Prophet appointed Usama ibn Zayd, an eighteen-year-old, to command a major military expedition, trusting capable youth with responsibility rather than sidelining them. Nigeria's youth restiveness, cybercrime ('Yahoo-Yahoo’ and ‘Yahoo-Plus') and delinquency stem partly from a leadership culture that offers young people no honest stake. Deliberate investment on, and inclusion of youth in governance, as the Prophet modelled, is the corrective strategy to our nations antisocial behaviours among youth, the largest and the most active demographic sector of our nation.
● Sanctity of Life Against Ritual Killing and Bloodshed: The Qur'an (5:32), revealed in his time, equates the unjust killing of one soul to killing all of humanity, and the Prophet abolished the entrenched tribal blood-feuds of pre-Islamic Arabia. Ritual killings and ritual-motivated violence in parts of Nigeria today stand condemned by this same principle of the inviolable sanctity of human life.
● Religious Tolerance and Pluralism: Through the Constitution of Madinah, the Prophet bound Muslims, Jews and other tribes into one civic community with guaranteed rights regardless of faith. Nigeria's recurring religious intolerance and sectarian tension find their remedy in this same prophetic model of principled coexistence, not the exclusionary rhetoric that too often passes for religious zeal today.
As we mark the birth of the worlds most celebrated leader TODAY, we must realise that good governance is a two-way covenant. MLA therefore calls on Nigerian leaders - political, traditional and religious - to emulate the Prophet's accountability, humility and justice; and calls on citizens to emulate the discipline, patience and constructive civic engagement of his companions, who supported righteous leadership and resisted wrongdoing without descending into chaos or lawlessness. Where the companions held their leaders to account through consultation and principled dissent, never through anarchy or self-help justice, Nigerians today are urged to demand good governance through legitimate, peaceful means.
As the nation marks this Mawlid, MLA Nigeria urges every civil servant to rest fully today, and every Nigerian - leader and led - to revisit the total life good example (Uswatun Hasanah) of Prophet Muhammad (SAW) as a living manual for the justice, empathy, discipline and integrity our country urgently needs. May this reflection translate into the leadership renewal, civic responsibility and good governance that Nigeria deserves.
Signed:
Prof. AbdWasiu Olabamiji Ajagbe
Professor of Structural and Material Engineering, University of Ibadan, President, Muslim Lecturers Association (MLA), Nigeria
