Jigawa community holds three-day special prayer for rain amid prolonged dry spell

Residents of Basirka town in Gwaram Local Government Area of Jigawa State have held a three-day special prayer seeking divine intervention for rainfall following a prolonged dry spell affecting their farms. The prayer, known as Salatul Istisqa, started on Saturday and continued through Sunday and Monday, with residents also observing a voluntary fast on Monday […] Jigawa residents hold three-day prayer for rainfall

Residents of Basirka town in Jigawa State have held a three-day special prayer for rainfall following a prolonged dry spell that has left farmlands witheri Read More: https://punchng.com/drought-jigawa-community-holds-three-day-special-prayer-for-rain/

Residents of Basirka town in Gwaram Local Government Area of Jigawa State gathered in large numbers for a three-day special prayer seeking rainfall amid a prolonged dry spell that has left farmlands withering.The prayers, known as Salatul Istisqa, began on Saturday and continued through Sunday and Monday at the town’s Eid ground. Residents also observed a voluntary fast on Monday to seek divine intervention.Hundreds of people from Basirka and neighbouring villages, including farmers, Islamic clerics, elderly residents, youths, men, women and children, converged under the scorching sun with hands raised in supplication.The sessions were organised in response to an acute shortage of rainfall that has caused crops to begin drying up. While some southern parts of the country have experienced heavy downpours and flooding, farmers in parts of northern Nigeria, including Jigawa, have reported poor and intermittent rainfall that threatens rain-fed agriculture.In a brief sermon after the two-rak’ah prayer on Monday, the Chief Imam of Basirka, Sheikh Sanunu Basirka, who led the session, urged residents to seek forgiveness and return to God. He noted that the prayers had been held for three consecutive days and were accompanied by voluntary fasting.“We have gathered here today at the Eid ground to sincerely repent and ask Allah to forgive us and bless us with abundant rainfall that will bring mercy and prosperity to our land,” he said. He described the lack of rain as a test from Allah and called on people to intensify prayers, give charity and avoid acts that invite divine displeasure, adding that repentance opens the doors of heaven for blessed rain.A 65-year-old farmer, Ibrahim Musa Dankoli, said his maize and millet farms were drying up. “We have not had good rainfall for weeks, and our crops have started burning. We have no power except to return to Allah for help,” he told reporters.Another resident, Haruna Aliyu Basirka, expressed anxiety among local farmers, noting that the rains had stopped in the middle of the farming season. Youth leader Malam Sulaiman Adamu Basirka said the community had come out together, old and young, men and women, to plead for beneficial rain that would save farms and provide water for livestock.