Ahead of the Arafat day, the Emir of Ilorin, Alh Ibrahim Sulu-Gambari on Wednesday urged the Nigerian pilgrims to use the period to pray for peace and unity of their country.
The traditional ruler also prayed for sound health for Nigerian pilgrims in Saudi Arabia.
Sulu-Gambari, in a statement signed by his spokesman, Dr Arowona Abdulazeez, reminded pilgrims to explore the opportunity to get closer to Almighty Allah in body and soul by performing the obligatory spiritual exercise of the sacred day of Arafat with the fear of God, piety and spirit of brotherhood among themselves in order to have the full reward of the hajj.
He stressed that Hajj is a pillar of Islam which is fostering unity and harmony among Muslim Ummah globally.
Sulu-Gambari emphasised that Arafat Day is a sacred day to all Muslims across the world, especially to pilgrims who have left everything behind, including family members in search of Allah’s forgiveness and mercies in the holy land.
He urged the pilgrims to be vigilant and cautious with their belongings and avoid loss of money and other valuables while performing the obligatory spiritual rites.
He further sent heartfelt greetings of the entire members of the Kwara State Traditional Rulers Council to the pilgrims, including the Kwara State governor, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq .
Sulu-Gambari, however, prayed Allah to grant the pilgrims sound health and absolute guidance to enable them complete the exercise.
