Local Muslim groups are collaborating on a series of programmes to mark the birth anniversary of the Prophet Muhammad.
According to a press release, the Muslim Youth League of Guyana, the Anna Catherina Islamic Complex (ACIC), the Guyana Islamic Forum and the Guyana United Sadr Islamic Anjuman are associated with the series which started yesterday and is being hosted in the Islamic month Rabi-ul-Awal, the prophet’s birth month. The programme, which is incorporating the theme ‘The Greatest gift to mankind is the prophet of Islam’, will be held until May month end. The release said the organisations have been observing Eid Milad un Nabi or Youman Nabi for decades. The first part of the programme, the ‘Welcome to Rabi-ul-Awal’, will be held at the ACIC while the main session will be held on Sunday at the ACIC, West Coast Demerara, at 2 pm. India-born International Islamic Scholar Khateeb-ul-Islam Hazrat Maulana Allama Sayed Abdulhasan al Azhari Ashrafi is expected to deliver the feature address. Hazrat Abdulhasan is a graduate of the Al Azhar University in Egypt. Delegations from Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago (T&T) and Holland and overseas Qaseeda singers are also expected to attend.
The roster also includes Guyanese delegations visiting Suriname and T&T during the weekend of March 31 and April 1, to join their observances. The ACIC will host its Eid-Milad-un Nabi programme on April 2. The ACIC will also host the ‘Evening of Ghazals and Qaseedas 111’, which will feature internationally acclaimed singers, in April. The dates for other programmes, which will be hosted at the Sadr Anjuman and at the Georgetown Masjid Munawwar, will be announced later.
The grand finale, which will comprise the annual National Qaseeda Singing Competition, will be held on May 26 and 27. The winners will represent Guyana at the International Qaseeda Competition that will be hosted in Suriname in August. The Guyanese delegation is expected to comprise more than 100 participants.
