12 Muslim Students Receive Educational Sponsorship As 15-Year-Old Wins Scholarship Competition

 

Through dept of hard work, prayer, focus and determination, a 15-year-old girl, Adeniyi Fatimoh emerged as the overall winner in the scholarship examination organised by a renowned Islamic group, Standard Bearers Islamic Organization (SB).

The scholarship examination, conducted by the National body of the Standard Bearers Islamic Organization, included Mathematics and English Language tagged ‘Virtual Career Mentorship Program’ (vCMP 2021) and was conducted for over 500 Muslim students who are in SS3 across the country.

The award for Ife Zone held at Aisha mosque at Ondo road in Ile Ife on Sunday, 7th March, 2021. Similar awards have previously been held at Abuja (FCT) and in Ilorin, Kwara State earlier this year.

Seven Muslim students emerged as the winners of the WAEC Scholarship having scored 60 marks and above in the screening examination. They include; Adeniyi Fatimah took first position, Gafar Olamide took second position, Aishat Afolabi took third position, Tajudeen Aishat took fourth position, Ishola Tawakalt took fifth position, Ojelowo Taofeeqoh took sixth position and Ishola Bakri Taofeeqoh took seventh position.

While the winners were given each payment of their Senior Secondary Examination fees, other five Muslim students who did not meet up with the scholarship cut off mark were given certificates of participation and textbook of their choice to prepare them for the upcoming examination.

While speaking with our correspondent, the winner for Ife Zone and the National overall second best with 82%, Fatimah, a student of OAU International School expressed her happiness for the opportunity given to her by the SB and also revealed her ambition of becoming a medical doctor in the future.

When she was asked about how she felt when she emerged the winner, she said: ‘ I was very happy. At first, my parents did not obtain the form for me on time but I thank God everything comes out well and I didn’t disappoint them’.

She also advised the students at her level to be very hardworking, prayerful and seek advice in everything they do in life.

 

Why the SB Award?

The State Coordinator of the Standard Bearers Islamic organization, SB, Mallam Baasit Ishaaq said the award of scholarships which started five years ago, is designed to help the less privileged in the society, especially the indigent who find it difficult to fund the payment for their final school certificate examination.

He said: “These are ways of helping the government, helping the society to bring about development especially in the area of education. The idea emanated from the fact that we noted that most these students don’t have enough especially, the brilliant but indigent ones.

” We deemed it to contribute our own quota in this little way, so the indigent ones could also have sound education. We believe this will assist them in reaching their goals in life and thereby becoming productive members of the society.

He urged government on the need to collaborate with willing and relevant nongovernmental organisations like the SB in their bid to help the indigent students in the pursuit of their education.

Speaking during the awards day, Head Of Department of Chemical Engineering at Obafemi Awolowo University, Dr. Shuaib Osunleke, while delivering his lecture on the topic: ” Reaching Peak in a Pandemic Era”, stressed the essence of attaching seriousness to everything one does in life.

According to him, reaching peak is not limited to Pandemic era alone because it is an era that comes, stays for a while and goes. Thus, one who wants to reach the peak must try as much as possible to have a specific goals and works very hard towards actualizing the set goals.

He also advised the students to refrain themselves from the habit of using unnecessary excuses to destroy their plans and goals.

*”You are a failure if you give excuses for not achieving your goals’,* he said.

Also speaking, the Chief Imam of Ile-Ife, Sheik Abdul-Sami Abdul-Hameed emphasised on the necessity of Muslim children to be educated as to overcome some of the challenges and unequal treatments to which Muslims are being subjected in politics and other domains relevant to decision making in our society.

He commended the efforts of the organizers as well as those of the beneficiaries and charged them to watch everything they are doing because what we do today is an history tomorrow.

He also implored the students to see the organisers, guest lecturers, and parents as their model from whom they need to learn a lot and seek advice on the cause of their journey in life.

He also advised parents to always treat children equally especially in giving education.

Dignitaries at the award ceremony include; Prof. Idowu Ola of Department of Animal Sciences, OAU, Dr. Ajiboye Suhaib Osunleke, the HOD of Chemical Engineering Department, OAU, Sheik Abdul-Sami Abdul-Hameed, the Chief Imam of Ile-Ife, the Naibul Imam and the Mufaseer of Ife Land, School Proprietors, parents , well wishers of the awardees and many others graced the occasion.