Maryam Uwais argues the need to empower the orphans through education
There is a famous anecdote from the life of Al-Ghazali, known as one of the most influential legal theoreticians, philosophers, theologians and mystics in Islamic history. Once during his travels, Al-Ghazali was attacked by highway robbers. He remained remarkably calm and composed and the robbers demanded all his belongings. His response, ‘You have taken my belongings, but you cannot take what I have in my heart’. Puzzled the robbers asked him what he meant. Al-Ghazali explained that the knowledge he had acquired throughout his life resided within him and could not be taken away by anyone. His possessions could be stolen, but his knowledge was safe and secure. With this narrative, Al-Ghazali emphasized the importance of prioritizing intellectual (and spiritual) growth over worldly possessions.
I recall this anecdote against the background of a story that has hit the headlines recently, from Niger State. The Speaker of the House of Assembly in that State announced publicly that as part of his constituency project, he was planning to sponsor the wedding of 100 orphans in Mairiga LGA of Niger State, who had lost their parents in banditry attacks. In not so many words, marriage was seemingly being proposed as the solution to poverty.
Mixed reactions quickly followed. The Minister for Women Affairs held a press briefing to announce that she had filed a court action and was seeking for an injunction to stop the marriages from taking place on the designated date. She raised many questions, including who the potential husbands were, the age of the orphans and if their consent had been obtained. Reacting to the uproar, an aide of the speaker clarified that most of the girls were of marriagable age, and that there had been consultations with family members, as well as religious leaders and other critical stakeholders, to facilitate the orphan’s ability to meet the material expenses for marriages that were already in the pipeline, before the announcement was made.
To cut a long story short, the Speaker subsequently publicly retracted his offer. On the other hand, the Forum for Imams in Niger State (and a few Muslim organisations), are said to be backing the marriages, irrespective. Petitions have also been filed with the Nigeria police and by civil society organisations to stop these apparently arranged marriages. Thankfully, the Etsu Nupe and the Emir of Kontagora, both first class chiefs and highly respected traditional rulers from Niger State, have intervened to persuade the Minister to withdraw the action, while assuring that proper investigation would be carried out before the marriages could proceed.
The entire saga is bewildering and I am truly confused. If this issue is truly about resolving the challenges being experienced by these orphans, many questions arise. Is marriage the proposed solution to poverty, in Islam? Are structures in place to protect these apparently vulnerable orphans, and is tying the marriage knot the end game in terms of the ‘protection’ being offered by the Speaker, and the Forum of Imams? Are the potential husbands in a position to sustain and maintain the new wives? Indeed, since this is said to be about poverty, what safeguards are being instituted to ensure that the wives are actually catered for, after the marriages are conducted? Who can they run to, if the husbands do not comply with the basic principles of marriage; to care for them, provide them with the basic necessities of food, shelter, health and for their children when they arrive? What if they are divorced unjustly and thrown out of their matrimonial homes, as can happen, even though it is well known that divorce is repulsive within the faith? Who will protect the rights of these poor orphans, if they are maltreated or abused? Indeed, is Islam not about education, and learning? Does the faith insist that the female should be fully dependant on the husband, or is she also perceived as having the ability to own her own property and running her own business?
Some perceive that the Minister herself jumped headlong into this matter, without interrogating the issues or taking into account the culture and sensitivities of the community. But surely inquiry about the priority for educating and empowering the orphans is consistent with the benefits and centrality of knowledge, as well as learning, to Islamic culture. It is what Al Ghazali emphasized in the anecdote that began this piece. The outright dismissal of this priority cannot be about our faith. Need we be reminded that the very first verse revealed in the Holy Qur’an began with the command, ‘to read’. Not ‘to marry’.
From this standpoint, therefore, the offer to empower and educate the girls should be embraced by those who truly feel empathy for these orphans and the sad predicament they find themselves in. Indeed, empowering the girls to facilitate the acquisition of agency and the ability to earn their own income should be the primary consideration if the orphan’s sustained wellbeing is to be prioritized. What she learns can never be taken away from her, even if she is discarded subsequently by a husband. Marriage can certainly follow after the effort is made to ensure that these orphans are sufficiently physically and mentally mature, prepared to appreciate the responsibilities of marriage, having been empowered to support themselves and their families. Maturity does have a central role to play, in any marriage. We also disregard the direct linkage between maternal mortality, infant mortality, malnutrition (for both baby and mother), mental health challenges, domestic abuse, the lack of an income and the ensuing poverty, drug abuse, fractured families ensuing from wanton and frivolous divorces, as well as the lingering almajiri fall out, all of which (amongst others) can be, and often are the direct consequences of marriages conducted too early. Delaying (as against forbidding) the onset of a marriage can only make for healthier, more peaceful, more harmonious and more sustainable unions. No faith deeply embedded with the universal attributes of justice and fairness, can subscribe to such blind suffering and dismal outcomes for the weak and the voiceless in our midst. It is paradoxical that too many continue to turn a blind eye to these manifest realities in our own context.
Hopefully, this particular saga will ultimately be resolved in favour of the orphans, but we must remain vigilant. Thus far, we have the Royal Fathers to thank, as well as the Speaker, Minister and all the voices that have brought these issues to the public domain. It is, however, worth reminding the Minister also, that there are too many children; boys, and especially girls; languishing in our IDP camps, who need to be empowered. She must proceed quickly with the collation of requisite data and systematically engaging them. She must adopt a similar resolve to support them in a wholesome manner, along with the other Ministries and Agencies that are relevant to the needs. They all need to enrol/resume in school, physical and mental healthcare, skills and adequate shelter. Time is swiftly running out for far too many.
Maryam Uwais, OON, is a lawyer and a former Presidential Special Adviser on Social Investments
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