The Zamfara State Governor, Bello Matawalle, has suspended repatriation of street children, known as Almajiri, from the state.
This was made known by the spokesman of the Zamfara State Government, Yusuf Idris.
Yusuf quoted Matawalle as saying: “My administration will not repatriate any almajiri from the state, all those repatriated from other states can come to Zamfara and will be accommodated.”
He said the governor changed his earlier position following a meeting with three Islamic scholars: “Abdullahi Dallah-Dallah, Chief Imam of Sambo, Dan-Ashafa Jumaat Mosque, Gusau and Sheikh Bello Kanwa, who paid him Sallah homage at his country home, at Maradun.”
The governor also announced the scrapping of the committee he earlier constituted for the repatriation of almajiris from the state.
He said the decision followed “a careful study of almajiri system in the state which only needs to be integrated into western education for the purpose of acquiring qualitative education in both western and Islamic knowledge”.
Matawalle said he cancelled the repatriation idea in order to give the almajiri “a sense of belonging and reduce the stigmatisation meted on the Almajiri Islamic teaching and learning in the country”.