File photo: A picture of some children on the street
Founder and Leader of “Let the Bible and Quran speak”, Sheikh Illyas Abdul Rahman, is indicated that weak Muslim leadership is one of the main reasons why the phenomenon of street begging among Muslims prevails.
He told Nana Romeo on Accra100.5FM’s mid-morning show, ‘Ayekoo Ayekoo’ that because Islam talks a lot about giving charity, many people are taking advantage of it.
He noted that because “every Muslim knows that there's blessing in giving", some non-Muslims even disguise themselves as Muslims.
“Begging in Islam is a sin. Except one is experiencing serious hardship, it is unacceptable," he said.
He however said nowadays, a lot of people, both healthy and disabled, see begging on the streets as a business venture.
He revealed that some individuals traffic children especially, from Niger and other neighbouring countries and initiate them into the begging "business".
According to Sheikh Abdul Rahman, the spate of the street begging phenomenon especially among Muslims is because "our leadership is weak".
