Hajiya Aisha Muhammad Nahuche’s name went viral recently when she was reported to have found and returned $80,000 during this year’s Hajj in Saudi Arabia. She hails from Nahuche community in Bungudu Local Government Area of Zamfara State. Speaking with Daily Trust on Sunday after her return from Hajj, Hajiya Aisha and her sons revealed why she returned the money.
Why we sponsored our mother for Hajj – Sons
Hajiya Aisha’s sons, who were even more elated than their mother, said her action brought honour to the country, adding that they did not regret sponsoring her for the holy pilgrimage.
One of her sons, Bashir Muhammad, told Daily Trust on Sunday that she informed him of the money and he asked her to take it to the relevant authorities.
“I saw the story trending on the social media.
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“We grew up hoping to sponsor our mother to Hajj one day. She assumed the role of father and mother to us when we lost our father. As she told you earlier, we lost our father when we were kids and she tried her best to raise us up in the best way she could.
“We decided that none of us would go for Hajj until she performed the pilgrimage. She was our priority when it came to Hajj. We are grateful to the Almighty Allah for giving us the opportunity to sponsor her.
Our mother has brought honour to our family, community, state and our country. We are very happy for this. We hope this would be an inspiration to all Ummah.
On her part, Hajiya Aisha said this year’s Hajj was the first time she performed the holy pilgrimage in her life and she was sponsored by her four sons.
“My sons, Bashir, Nazir, Muhammad and Ahmad sponsored my Hajj trip. I raised them because they lost their father when they were kids. None of them has ever gone to Saudi Arabia for Hajj, but they decided to pay for me. I am grateful to them.”
Why I returned the money – Hajiya Aisha
“I was doing Tawaff when I stumbled on a bag. I tried to pick it but I feared that I could be trampled upon due to the huge crowd. I kicked the bag to a distance and one Arab man noticed and thought it was mine. He quickly grabbed it and handed it to me.
“So I kept it and after the Tawaff ritual, I checked and found out that there was money in it. One woman from Gada also opened the bag and found out that it contained money. She counted the money and said the money was huge. I quickly went out to look for an official from our local government, Bungudu. The official then took me to Sheikh Umar Kanoma, where I handed over the money to him,” she said.
She said state officials then looked for Saudi officials to inform them of the development, and some days later, the money was given to Saudi officials.
“When I found the money, I called one of my sons, Bashir and told him of the development and he reminded me that I went to Saudi Arabia to perform Hajj, not to look for money.
“He encouraged me to look for the owner and return the money, and I assured him that that was what I was going to do and there was no cause for alarm. It was expected of me to return the money because it wasn’t mine.”
She said she did not understand the magnitude of what she did until she returned to Nigeria.
“Everyone I met asked about the incident. In fact, I did not know that news about the money I returned had filtered into the country until I returned home.
“I prayed hard for my children, my state and country in general. I am proud of my sons, they are taking good care of me. They are into trading and farming. I have no problem with them,” she added.
