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Official Opening of Zayed's College For Girls

 

Benefit For Humanity "Generous grants are made to all corners of the world regardless of race ,creed, color or faith in accordance with the sayings of prophet Mohammed ( Sallalahu Alayihi Wasalam- may peace be upon him) that, "In helping all living creatures there is reward for you". They apply this principle with out any  expectations of worldly gain or returns and without any reluctance" were the opening remarks made by His Excellency, Sheikh Abdullah Sultan Al Dhahiri at the opening ceremony of the Zayed's College for Girls in Mangere, Auckland, on 29th January 2001. On the morning of 29th representatives of Muslim organizations based in New Zealand, a representative from Manakau City Council, a representatives from the Ministry of Education, a party from the Maori group from Mangere and a large delegation from the United Emirates were seated in the Multi-purpose hall of Zayed's college at 10 am to witness the official opening of this $ 5 million project.

MESSAGE FROM HIS HIGHNESS, ZAYED

 

His highness, Sheikh Abdullah Sultan Al Dhahiri, the guest of honor, and Director of the Zayed Foundation, addressed this large crowd at a well-organized function in Arabic. The translation of his speech was flash of the background in English and for people like us who have had no short hand training we were given a copy of his keynote address.

The guest of honor paid gratitude to the excellent relationship existing between New Zealand and UAE. Zayed College, a landmark in your beautiful country, New Zealand, was the result of this close working relationship and cooperation of all the authorities involved in this magnificent project.

“The reason why the Zayed bin Sultan al Nahayan Charitable and Humanitarian  Foundation build a college for girls in New Zealand is because of the status that our religion accords to women. The Qur’an assures us that men and women have the same origin and are equal in the sight of ALLAH (Subhanahu Wa Ta’ala) as far as rewards and obligations are concerned, “ was his remarks. He emphasized that there is a whole chapter in the Qur’an paying tribute to women , namely , Sura Mariam. This sura pays tribute to Mary (may peace be on her ), mother of prophet Esa ( Jesus – Alayhis Salaam ) who was the most virtuous and pure women. Prophet, Muhammed ( Sallalahu Alayhis Wassalam) throughout his life, practiced kindness , gentleness and fairness to all the women he came into contact with. He encouraged all the girls that enrolled here to reach the highest standard of knowledge, faith purity and morals and imitate the role models of the wives of the prophet and all the other great ladies from our Islamic heritage. We need to educate our women for every  female is a daughter, a sister a wife a mother and a grandmother.

“Read in the name of our Lord who created. Created   man from a clot. Read in the name of our Gracious Lord, WHO taught man by the pen. Taught man what he knew not” (Qur’an sura 96 ) was his introduction and emphases to the importance of knowledge  in Islam. Men and women of great knowledge are bestowed with respect as they are the ones who are seeking the truth by observing, wondering, pondering and meditating upon the cosmos and all that is contains . Knowledge is the most valuable possession and virtue that a person can acquire and he should be constantly in prayer for, “ALLAH to increase him in knowledge”.

In his concluding remarks he paid tribute to New Zealand's shining examples of the peaceful and mutual respected co-existence of the various cultures in this beautiful green country. He thanked all the authorities that facilitated and helped in this project. He also called on the Muslims of the New Zealand  to demonstrate the highest standards of citizenship by upholding the morals of Islam, which are consistent with the truth. His final gratitude was to thank ALLAH  ( Subhanahu Wa Ta’ala ) for filling our hearts with sincerity and knowledge that is beneficial and full of wisdom.

 

OPENING DUA BY SHEIKH AIROT

 

This Ceremony was opened with a beautiful Arabic recital from the Glorious Qu’ran By Sheikh Muhammed Airot. The Imaam of the ponsonby Masjid and the Chairman of the Ulema Board of New Zealand. He selected this appropriate passage which describes the immaculate Conception and birth of Nabied Esa ( Jesus Alayhis Salaam ) . This passage emphasized the greatness and mercy of the Creator who not only made the birth of Nabie Esa possible but also gave the infant knowledge and wisdom to speak from the cradle to clear his mother’s reputation by informing the people of his mission on this earth. Nabie Esa ( Alayhis Salaam) said , “I am a slave of ALLAH, HE has given me the Scripture and HE has made  me a prophet.” 9 Qur’an  19:30 ). Sheikh Airot conclude his sweet recitation by reminding everyone that, “ ALLAH is my Lord and your Lord. So worship HIM alone. This is the straight path.” ( Qur’an 19:36).

 

WELCOME AND GOOD WISHES BY MOARI ELDERS

 

Mr Eru Thompson, one  one of the Moari elders from Mangere, welcomed everyone in the Maori especially the guest who have come from overseas. He felt that all those present in the audience were just other tribes and he accorded them the respect that any of the tribes in the New Zealand would enjoy. He made a very strong pleas that we should strengthen our relationship and work in harmony. He was very impressed with the school especially recognizing that the Maori language as been part of this college. The signage on the doors appears in English, in Arabic and in Maori. This was an indication that that although you have come to the waters of Ateoroa ( New Zealand ) you are prepared to become part of it. His concluding remarks after the dinner was one of gratitude and surprise to have heard how beautifully the children sang the national anthem of the UAE as well as the national anthem of New Zealand in the Maori language. He passed on his best wishes to the administration, staff and students of the college, and hopes that they will reach their goals in life. He concluded with a Maori saying that, “when you teach a man you teach one person, but when you teach a women you teach a nation.”

 

THE MANUKAU CITY COUNCIL

 

Councilor, Bill Kirk from the Manukau City council also conveyed his congratulations to the college and was very proud to have had this beautiful girls college in the Manukau district. This district has approximately 280000 people from about 150 different ethnic groups of the world. We provide facilities to all these groups living in our district. The Muslim community which makes up about 20 000 in New Zealand is just a part of them. He mentioned that when the Maori first came to New Zealand they landed with their canoes at a beach not far from here and today with the arrival of the different groups from all over the world, they still land in the same area but by planes.

 

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION

 

Miss Katherine Percy, senior manager from the Ministry of Education, Auckland, also congratulated the Zayed’s college for the impressive institute and she was very pleased with the Muslim community who places such a high regard on the education of their children. She was interested to see Islamic influence finding its way into the New Zealand curriculum at this school and also seeing to the language needs of its community. The Ministry of Education has made provision for the establishment of private schools such as the Zayed’s college . We have such a divers population and we need to cater for that diversity. On record we have only 4% of the schools population attending private schools. She has found a very strong involvement of the Muslim parents towards the education of their children. She concluded by wishing that this College will become a great learning institute as it has superb facilities and all the modern and latest technologies . This is a very impressive and esteemed architectural landmark in New Zealand.

 

PLANNING OF THE COLLEGE

 

Maan Alzaher, the architect, and supervisor from Architectural plus Limited was beaming with happiness and full of gratitude of having the ‘ Hand” of ALLAH ( Subhahahu Wa Ta’ala) present all the time in this project.” I could feel His presence with everything that I did here, especially when things appeared to have gone wrong. This is a great occasion for me. It is a dream come to reality as my heart was deeply involved  in this project. Our gratitude also goes out to teams of experts from the various branches of construction who have come together to create this beautiful structure. On behalf of The Islamic Education and Dawah Trust I want to convey our humble thanks to ALLAH (Subhanahu Wa Ta’ala )for making this possible and all those who had a hand in making this venture become a possibility. Schools are the best investment for the future of our kids,” were  his introductory remarks. He went on to describe the actual planning and the various facets of the school. Maintaining the privacy of the girls is important in Islam. There is also sufficient room for the construction of another 10 classrooms when the need arises.

The whole planning of the school was to create an environment that will effect human feeling and behavior this becomes evident when Maan conducted a guided tour of the college after the formal function. He gave a commentary over the public address system of the college, on the setting of the facilities, its structure, reasons for the modern arrangements even down to the choice of colors in the classrooms.

There were many favorable remarks made by the guest who went on this guided tour.

 

 

 CONGRATULATIONS BY PROF. ALI JIANG FROM CHINA

Retired professor from China, Dr Ali Jiang said, “In all my years of teaching and experience in education I have not come across such a superb school structure for the education of children. Even in all my travels and experience with the Board of Education in New York I have not come across anything equal to this. May ALLAH (Subhanahu Wa Ta’ala) give all those who come here to learn the wisdom to outsmart this structure”.

 

CONGRATULATIONS BY DR. ANWAR GHANI, PRESIDENT OF THE FEDERATION OF ISLAMIC ASSOCIATIONS OF NEW ZEALAND (FIANZ)

 

Dr Anwar Ghani, president of the Federation of Islamic Associations from Hamilton who was also present at the opening had the following pleasant comments to make, “The Federation of Islamic Associations of New Zealand (FIANZ welcomes the opening of the Zayed college for young Muslimah in the south Auckland area. This is the first Muslim girls col.lege in New Zealand. The opening of this school on 29 January has added a new chapter in the history of the development of Muslims’ facilities in New Zealand, I would like to thank the Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan  Charitable and Humanitarian Foundation, UAE, who have provided such generous funding for the construction of this college. I would like to congratulate the trustees of the Islamic Education and Dawah Trust, Auckland for their enthusiasm, dedication and patience in pursuing this project. Masha Allah, the construction of the school is of excellent quality. There has been a need for segregated secondary and high school facilities for Muslim girls in Auckland area for some time. Insha Allah, Zayed College for Girls will go a long way in filling this gap. May Allah SWT bless everyone who has been involved in this noble project. When he was asked about the influence this college will have on other Muslim centers, he added, “I am confident that the quality of education provided in this school will match its external appearance. Its success will bring about the proliferation of such facilities in other area of New Zealand. I would like to encourage Muslim Parents to use this well built facility and encourage teachers and managers to strive to make this project a success. He concluded by not forgetting the greatest planner in the this project, “May Allah SWT bless us with the right knowledge to follow our Deen and give us the wisdom to take this message of universal peace and brotherhood to others. May Allah SWT keep us united to further the cause of islam- Alhamdoelillah”.

 

 CONCLUSION

Tom Elliot, from Modern Signs, who was responsible for the signage indicated that, “it was a real pleasure to have a very small input in this magnificent landmark in New Zealand. I have developed the greatest respect for the Organizers of  this project and I was delighted to see the spirit of unity and closeness that the Muslim community has. I have met a number of Muslims and they are warm and always have a welcoming smile on their faces . Best of luck for a very bright future for all those who come here for an improvement in their lives.” After the guided tour the guests were entertained to a scrumptious lunch with a mixture of Middle Eastern and New Zealand dishes. Tables were laid decorated with white tablecloths and the best cutlery and crockery. Indeed a well arranged function were the guest departed with a memory of the superb structure of the Zayed’s College for Girls and the hospitality of the organizers of the function.

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