MUSLIM STUDENTS’

SOCIETY OF NIGERIA

1.0 HISTORY
The Muslim Students' Society of Nigeria popularly referred to
th
as MSSN was established on April 18 , 1954 and was officially
launched at the Ansaruddeen Alakoro Mosque School Hall,
Lagos on 30th May 1954 amidst prayer, joy and exhortation. The
antecedents of this noble struggle could be traced to the effort
of the triumvirate of Tajudeen Adisa Aromoshodu, Sumola Akin
Luguda and Abdurrahman Alade Sahid of the then Methodist
Boys High School, Lagos.

The idea of setting up an organization for Muslim students was

born out of Muslims' desires to safeguard their religious
fundamentals, culture and identity from the twin effects of
forceful evangelization and alluring Christian activities.

The history of colonial education in Nigeria had a remarkably

coincidental relationship with Christian evangelism. As such,
Muslim students at the initial stage had to study under the
tutelage of Christian missionary society schools. The prevalent
situation at that time necessitated Muslims to study under a
very hostile environment where some of those students were
reported to have changed their religion. Others who were
steadfast and were willing to pursue their academic activities
were forced to change their names. It was this type of forceful
evangelization coupled with alluring activities that made the
afore-mentioned trio to come together and call for the
establishment of an organization whose principal aim was to
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serve as a rallying point and a platform for organized and

concerted Da'awa activities in our educational institutions and a
source for religious fulfillment for Muslim students.

Within a year of the Society's formation, its branches spread to

cover more schools in Lagos, Abeokuta, Ibadan, llesha, Ijebu-
Ode, and Ikorodu. Two years later, the Society's presence
covered virtually all government schools in the North.

At the first conference of the society held in 1955, which was

declared opened by Oba Adeniji Adele II of Lagos, Brother
Abdullateef Adegbite and Brother A.R.A Sahid were elected as
the 1st National President and Secretary General respectively.
Also at the conference, the late Sardauna of Sokoto, Alhaji
Ahmadu Bello; Alhaji A.R.A. Smith of Ilesha; Dr. S.O. Biobaku;
Alhaji Inuwa Wada, then Minister of Works; Mrs H.M.
Shodeinde, M.B.E. and Alhaji Hummu Alaga of Ibadan were
appointed patrons and patronesses of the society.

The contributions of the MSSN to national development are

enormous and these include, among other things, serving as a
potent tool of national unity and cohesion. Apart from its
membership that cuts across all the geographical and ethnic
barriers, the MSSN promotes national integration and building
bridges through its programmes and activities that emphasize
the brotherhood of Islam, in particular, and mankind in general.
Furthermore, the society has continued to produce generations

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of outstanding leaders in all spheres of national life, whilst

defining and encouraging adherence to certain minimum
standards of national ethos. The Society remains a pressure
group working for the advancement of the interests of Muslims
and Islam. Indeed, past members of the MSSN occupy
leadership of virtually all leading Islamic organisations in
Nigeria today.

Another notable achievement of the Society is the creation of

confidence in the vast majority of Muslim students who openly
and proudly proclaim their identities as Muslims. It was also the
first Muslim organization in the country to spearhead the use of
Hijab by educated female Muslims.

The Society has been able to consistently produce Muslim

students who are a synthesis of scholarship and morality. In
virtually all spheres of life in the country, the Society has
contributed valuable, reliable and progressive personalities, be
it in governance, education sector, and other fields of
endaevour. The Society has largely been responsible for
setting of the agenda of both the campuses and the larger
environment. In a country rent by divisive ethnic sentiments, the
Society has built robust brotherhood that has remained
unprofaned and unassailable by the virus of ethnic bigotry. The
friendship generated by the Society is real and deep. The
Society has groomed a crop of leadership that is not just
Spartan but renders altruistic and selfless service. The Society

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has always made valuable contributions in the areas of good

governance, justice, and in fighting corruption, oppression and
immorality. It has also responded to issues of national and
international interest. The Society either nurtured or provided
manpower for virtually all the Muslim organizations that exist in
the country today.

Moreover, MSSN was instrumental to the formation of many

international organizations such as the International Islamic
Federation of Student Organizations (IIFSO) in Jeddah, the
International Institute of Islamic Thought (IIIT) in the USA, The
Muslim Students' Association of Canada and America as well
as the World Assembly of Muslim Youth (WAMY).
The Muslim Students' Society of Nigeria (MSSN) is registered
with the Cooperate affairs commission of the Federal
Government of Nigeria.

2.0 BASIS
The Society believes firmly in the Glorious Qur'an and the
Sunnah of the noble Prophet Muhammad (SAW) as its cardinal
basis and guide.

It also recognizes the rules and principles of the SHARIAH as

binding on all its members. It further believes and accepts the
saying that 'the acquisition of knowledge is a lifelong
process from the cradle to the grave and thus every
Muslim is essentially a student for life'. Ad infinitum, the

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Society is fully committed to holding fast to the cord of unity and

brotherhood which Allah has stretched to us.

The Society's Motto is “There is no deity worthy of worship

except Allah and Muhammad (SAW) is His messenger”

3.0 MEMBERSHIP
Membership of the Society is open to every Muslim who
believes in its vision and objectives. Currently, MSSN has
millions of members in all the 36 states of the federation and
Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory.

4.0 AIMS
The Society's aims and objectives are:
a) To work towards the development of the Ummah that
is guided by the SHARIAH

b) To bring all Muslims in closer union and inculcate in

them the true Islamic spirit of brotherhood and
absolute faith in ALLAH as the only basis for the
achievement of peace among mankind

c) To encourage the study of the Glorious Qur'an as a

Holy Book and Arabic language as the lingua franca of
the Islamic World and ensure proper understanding of
Islam among its members

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d) To promote the general welfare of Muslims and

safeguard their fundamental rights in any community

e) To constitute a strong force for the propagation and

strengthening of Islam in Nigeria and throughout the
world

f) To champion the cause of the oppressed in any

community

g) To embark on deliberate capacity building with a view

to meeting the manpower needs of the Ummah and
the larger society

h) To participate actively in the establishment and

promotion of good governance and responsible
leadership at various levels of the larger society

i) To lay a sound foundation for financial self sufficiency

to carry out its programmes and also promote the
development of an economically vibrant Ummah that
is self-reliant

5.0 VISION AND MISSION STATEMENT

The new vision of MSSN is:
“To establish an Islamic Ummah governed by
the principles and rules of the Shariah within
the next fifty years”
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While the Mission Statement is:

“The MSSN will work relentlessly towards the
establishment of a society that fosters all-
round human development. To achieve this,
MSSN will continuously strive towards
strengthening the Ummah educationally,
economically, spiritually and politically
through a wide spectrum of activities in
schools and the larger society in partnership
with likeminded organizations. To succeed,
MSSN must ensure that its members are God
fearing, knowledgeable, united and with
superior moral values”

6.0 MSSN STRUCTURE

The Society has a formalized pyramidal structure. At the top is
the Board of Trustees (BOT). This is followed by National
Executive Council and the National Working Committee. For
administrative purpose, the country is zoned into two: the A and
B zones (Northern and Southern zones) and the Area Units
(comprising the state chapters). Then comes the Area Councils
that coordinate the central, higher institution and secondary
school branches drawn from two or more local governments
that form the base of the Society.

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7.0 CURRENT STRUCTURE OF MSSN

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8.0 PROGRAMMES/ACTIVITIES
The Society at the national level has six main programmes viz
National Conference, National Islamic Vacation Course (IVC),
National Higher Institution Convention of Muslim Students
(NHICOMS), National Leadership Training Programme (LTP),
National Quiz Competition and National Convention of Muslim
Students in Secondary Schools (NACOMSISS). It also organizes
special retreats to brain-storm on issues of special concern.

8.1 NATIONAL CONFERENCE

The National Conference is held annually to receive and deliberate on
reports of National Officers. It is the supreme governing body of
MSSN. The Conference is rotated between the two zones. Zones,
Area Units, Councils, and Branches have their respective annual
conferences.

8.2 NATIONAL ISLAMIC VACATION COURSE (IVC)

IVC is a seven-day programme which usually comes in December of
every year in the two zones between 22nd -31st. The programme
usually attracts students from primary schools up to university. The
main activities in the camp, among other things, include: lecture,
ta'alim, classroom instruction, Da'awah outreach as well as
visitations. In classroom students are exposed to lessons with
regards to Qur'an, Hadith, Seera, Current Affairs, Mu'amalat and
Akhlaq.

The main objective of IVC is to complement the aims upon which the
Society was formed and at the same time expose Muslim students to
the challenges of intellectual stagnation cum moral stupor and equally
inculcate the culture of academic excellence.
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8.3 NATIONAL HIGHER INSTITUTION CONVENTION OF

MUSLIM STUDENTS (NHICOMS)
Because of the significant leadership roles they play in MSSN, all the
higher institution branches gather once in a year at a convention
aimed at finding solutions to identified problems of the organisation,
the larger Muslim community, and the society at large. Papers are
presented and discussed with roadmaps for implementation defined.
The Convention also provides for interaction among the higher
institution branches and members.

8.4 LEADERSHIP TRAINING COURSE (LTC)

To demonstrate its commitment to the development of quality
leadership both for its own internal needs and the society at large,
MSSN organizes a yearly Leadership Development Programme for
its members. This has tremendously helped to create generations of
leaders, who after their student lives, have continued to provide
leadership in different spheres of national life.

8.5 NATIONAL QUIZ COMPETITION

The programme is organized annually in order to stimulate the
academic activities of our promising young Muslim students at the
secondary school level.

8.6 NATIONAL CONVENTION OF MUSLIM STUDENTS IN

SECONDARY SCHOOLS (NACOMSISS)
As may be understood from the tittle, NACOMSISS is a programme
that draws its participants from secondary schools and subjects them
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to rigorous Islamic training with a view to instilling in them the spirit of

Islamic Universal brotherhood, sacrifice, selflessness and an
unsatiable desire for excellence in academics and indeed all spheres
of life. Seasoned scholars and intellectuals are normally the resource
persons for this “Catch them young” programme.

8.7 JIHAD / DA'WAH WEEK

All Area Units, Councils and branches have week-long annual
programmes to commemorate the founding of the organisation, do a
stock-taking and engage in activities and programmes that will
directly impact on the immediate environment, such as propagation
and enlightenment, social and humanitarian work, etc.

9.0 RELATIONSHIP/COLLABORATION WITH OTHER

ORGANIZATIONS
Believing in the principle of synergy, MSSN collaborates with other
Islamic organizations, both local and international, that share its
vision and objectives. It also collaborates with governmental and
nongovernmental organizations towards achieving its goals.

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