By Abba Gwale
Controversy is trailing the directive of the Kano State Hisbah Command, banning residents of the state from participating in “Black Friday” activities.
In a letter signed by its Principal Executive Officer II, the command expresses concern about tagging Friday, which is regarded by Muslims across the world holy ” Black “.
The command therefore bars anyone in the state from marking the day, which it says is against Islamic teaching and the majority of the population are Muslim.
The sharia police, which also urges the people to stop calling the day “black”, warned that its men would be deployed to ensure compliance and to stop any immoral activities to in the state.
But many people kicked against the Hisbah’s directives because there’s nothing immoral on enjoying cheapest prices of goods to celebrate the day.
Commentators on social media expressed shock that Hisbah didn’t conduct thorough before issuing the directive.
What is Black Friday?
Black Friday is an informal name for the Friday following Thanksgiving Day in the United States, which is celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November.
Many stores offer highly promoted sales on Black Friday and open very early, such as at midnight, or may even start their sales at some time on Thanksgiving. Black Friday is not an official holiday, but California and some other states observe “The Day After Thanksgiving” as a holiday for state government employees.
Black Friday has routinely been the busiest shopping day of the year in the United States since 2005. Other news reports have described it as the busiest shopping day of the year for a much longer period of time. Similar stories resurface year upon year at this time, portraying hysteria and shortage of stock. This creates a state of positive feedback.
