The Sultan of Sokoto and President of the Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs, Alhaji Abubakar Sa’ad, midnight on Saturday announced the sighting of the new moon, indicating the end of Ramadan.
In an announcement on the Nigerian Television Authority, the Sultan said: “The new month of Shawwal was sighted in different places within Nigeria and therefore tomorrow (Sunday) is the first day of Shawwal equivalent to 27 July 2014.”
But the Secretary-General of the NSCIA, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, said he was not aware the moon had been sighted, saying the National Moon-Sighting Committee has not been duly informed and therefore, fasting should continue.
Premium Times quoted Oloyede as saying: “I spoke to the Sultan about four times tonight and he did not tell me that the moon has been sighted. In any case, any such claim is ridiculous and unscientific. It cannot be right.
“The National Moon-Sighting Committee has not informed us of any credible sighting of the moon. Rather, they said the moon wasn’t sighted. The new moon was only born at 11:45pm tonight (Saturday) and it will take several hours for it to be sighted.
“Is our own sky different? Is our own moon manufactured in Nigeria?”
On Friday, the NSCIA Scribe has issued a statement asking Muslims to look out for the new moon.
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