Salaga (Northern Region), 29, Sept. The National Chief Imam, Sheikh Nuhu Sharubutu, has said that it is against the tenets of the Muslim religion for parents to deny their children basic education. Speaking to the GNA at Salaga yesterday, he said the quest for knowledge is one of the cardinal principles of Islam. Sheikh Sharubutu deplored the way some Muslim parents reject formal education in preference to Islamic education, stressing that the two can conveniently go together without having an effect on the religion. He regretted the high rate of illiteracy in Muslim communities in the country and pointed out that this is completely not in tune with the teachings of Islam. Sheikh Sharubutu said religion stands for progress and development and that these cannot come about when ignorance and illiteracy prevail. He called on Muslim parents to refrain from the practice of pulling out their girls from school for marriage, adding that both boys and girls should be given equal educational opportunities.
