I found Usman near a dirty pond place using it as toilet. Beside him was the small boy of his age who happens to be his guider waiting for him to finish.Usman who is not sure about his own age, but appears to be around 12-13 years, roaming around barefooted in dirty cloth and seemingly aimlessly, with dirty bowl in hand looking for alms. Burst into tears when I asked him what is wrong with his eyes.

Usman who is hail and hearty before he was brought to Kano by his parents to acquires Islamic Education known as Koran school in traditionally set-up run by a single mallam (teacher). Kano state is the choice for rural dwellers to send their children to acquire Islamic education. The students are boys. The pupil in a Koran school is called almajiri (the Arabic is al muhajir meaning a traveling student). After the late morning lesson the students would go round to fend for themselves, wandering city streets and begging for food.

Being Usman a pupil he must provide for himself if he want to survive. He told me “I have to beg because I don’t have money to buy food I regularly going to bed hungry” I asked him about his eyes again he said “I don’t know what is happened to me, all I know is I have a fever four years back and then the measles” I continue asking him is mallam taken him to hospital at that time? he said “NO” I asked again why? He said “he gave me traditional medicine after several weeks the ailment is still with me, somebody in the community take me to hospital”. Unfortunately is too late for Usman because the ailment made him lose his both eyes.

I asked Usman where is his parents? He said he doesn’t know. I asked are they visiting him. He said “NO” I asked again how he feels without them. Before he answers I saw the tears flowing from his lost sight eyes. He said he missed his mother and her cooking, and he said he missed his friends at home too, as well as his goat.

After I contacted the mallam, about Usman he said is not his fault because God already willed it. I also asked him why allows Usman going to begging despite his deformity? He said “why not? He is a pupil he must do it”. I suggest about taking Usman to formal school that is special education. The suggestion I gave was like adding fuel to a fire because mallam attacked me with hash words.

Despite the condition of Usman he must give mallam his share when he gets back from begging. I learnt that the other boys want to be Usman’s guide because people are given more charities when they saw Usman condition. The only difficulty Usman suffer is when he wants to ease himself; the boys refuse to escort him to the pond side where he uses as his toilet, as he told me.

Frankly, I am not against koranic education but the system. Why pupils in other Islamic countries are not begging? Why in Nigeria? Here government must take urgent measures by providing social amenities in the rural areas in order to stop rural dwellers sending their children into city in the name of acquiring Islamic education and end in wandering and wallowing for nothing The researched shows that about 2 million children are in Kano roaming in the street looking for food. And many of them are likely prone to child abuse, child labor and child trafficking.

What I wished for Usman was to acquire special education since he is still a young boy but, due to negligence from all sides Usman may likely spent all his life roaming in the street begging. I pitied Usman with whole heart.