Love your country, Mufti Menk tells Muslims

Celebrated Muslim scholar Mufti Ismail ibn Musa Menk has challenged Muslims to always speak well about their country, live in harmony, and use social media for the good of society.

The Zimbabwean scholar, who addressed a huge crowd of the Muslim faithful comprising students, the business community and academics, said speaking ill about the nation does not contribute to its development.

The crowd that jammed-packed the Makerere University Rugby Grounds braved an afternoon downpour amid tight security provided by the police and private security guards as they listened to Mufti Menk.

Celebrate Uganda

“People most times mention only the bad things about Uganda; do you know why? They want to justify why they are not in Uganda. Whatever you say, tells me much about you, not about Uganda,” Mufti Menk said.

“If you see someone in England, or Dubai [a city and emirate in the United Arab Emirates], who is Ugandan and says it’s problematic, he is missing the country. Uganda’s weather is better than elsewhere in the world. It’s the Pearl of Africa and you should cherish it,” he said.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs estimates that some 781,400 Ugandans were, as of 2020, living outside the country.

“So let us not complain and complain. I have moved around the world and Ugandans are hardworking, educated, and speak good English,” Mufti Menk said.

Many people, including non-Muslims, admire Mufti Menk, a thrilling preacher because of his liberal and open-minded preaching. His public lecture, which started at 9am, ended at 6.30pm.

Love and coexistence

He also said Uganda is a lovely place with good produce, which is non-modified and asked the Muslim faithful to live in harmony.

“We have people of different faiths and have a few struggles, but every country has its positives and negatives. You have a beautiful country and you need to look after it,” he said.

The latest statistics from the Uganda Bureau of Statistics put the population of Muslims in the country at 14 percent, forming the third largest religious group, with Catholics at 39 percent, and Protestants at 32 percent.

On Love and coexistence, Mufti Menk urged Muslims to love Allah above all else. He said one could only succeed when one has love for the Creator.

“Be careful how you talk about each other. If you disagree with someone, be very respectful because everyone makes mistakes and when one makes a mistake he needs to be guided and corrected in a beautiful way,” he said.

Mufti Menk cited the story of a man who came and urinated in a Majid, but the Prophet spoke to him very calmly and beautifully because the idea was to build the nation. He urged the Muslim community to follow that example.

Social media

On the use of the pervasive social media, Mufti Menk urged the Muslim faithful to use the platform for positive narratives. He said every time one sees a good message on TikTok like it, forward or share.

“These will particularly change the way we view social media platform towards spreading more good and positive stories,” he said.

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