Islamic school sets to establish university in Ibadan

The Arabic Institute of Nigeria has announced the acquisition of 50 acres of land for the establishment of a university in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.

AbdulWahab Ahmod, the Director of the institute, made the disclosure in Ibadan on Sunday at the grand finale of the institute’s 60th anniversary.

The institute, also known as Al-Ma’had Al-Arabiyy, was established in 1958 by Murtada Abdul Salam. Mr Ahmod, a senior cleric, said that the proposed university, located on Moniya/Iseyin road in the state, would be a conventional institution in line with the vision of the founder of the Arabic Institute.

He said the introduction of free education in the western region motivated the founder to transform the Arabic school from mat and slate to classroom and chalkboard set.

“AbdusSalam observed that the introduction of free education had discouraged Muslim children from attending Arabic classes after which he decided to standardize the classes to be in tune with what operated in western schools,” he said.

Muheeb Opeloye, the President, Alumni Association of the institution, said the products of the school had contributed significantly in different ways to human capital development. Opeloye, a professor of Islamic Studies at Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, said the institute had produced scholars competing with those produced by conventional western schools.

According to him, “Some of the giant strides recorded by the institution included affiliation with Imam University, Saudi Arabia and commencement of National Certificate of Education programme.

“Others were the recognition by Oyo State Government, participation in the external examination conducted by National Board of Arabic and Islamic Studies for Senior Certificate in Arabic and Islamic Studies Examination.”