Kebbi state government Nasir Idris has declared Monday as a public holiday to mark the beginning of the new Islamic calendar, first Muharram 1446AH.
The state Commissioner for Establishment, Auwal Manu-Dogondaji said this in a statement in Birnin Kebbi on Friday.
According to him, the 1st of Muharram is on a Sunday, and due to the importance of the Islamic New Year, the government decided to shift the public holiday to Monday.
Manu-Dogondaji congratulated the Muslim Ummah on the advent of the new Islamic calendar, urging the Muslims to sustain fervent prayers for peace, security and prosperity of Kebbi and the nation as a whole.
“I congratulate the governor to the entire Muslim Ummah across the globe,” the commissioner said.
Muharram (al-Muḥarram) is the first month of the Islamic calendar and one of the four sacred months of the year when warfare is banned. The tenth of Muharram is known as Ashura, an important day of commemoration in Islam.
For Sunni Muslims, the day marks the parting of the Red Sea by Moses and the salvation of the Israelites, celebrated through supererogatory fasting and other acceptable expressions of joy.
By contrast, Ashura is a day of mourning for Shia Muslims, who annually commemorate the death of Husayn ibn Ali, grandson of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and the third Shia imam.
NAN
