By Engr. Tawheed Popoola
The Chairman of IRFAN HILAL PROJECT, Engr. Tawheed Popoola has made it known to the general public that ‘Eidul Fitri 1443 is on Monday 2nd of May, 2022 and not Sunday 1st of May, 2022. He cautioned the leaders of the Muslims not to make the error of announcing Sunday 1st of May, 2022 as the day of ‘Eidul Fitri because this will not only be a national disgrace and shame to the nation as well as the leaders but also it will mislead the Muslims to miss a day in Ramadan.
He explained that the new moon will be born on Saturday 30th of April 2022 at 9.28PM (Nigerian time) which is about 2hrs 34mins after sunset and moonset will occur before sunset which technically means that the moon to search for is not even in the horizon. Hence, there is no moon to sight and it will be too wrong for anyone to claim sighting.
He clarified that the first appearance of the new crescent will be on Sunday 1st of May 2022 after sunset and the chances will even be slim because the illumination of the new crescent is less than 1.00%. Hence, it will not be seen in most places with the naked eye but some places will manage to see it especially with telescope.
Engr. Tawheed Popoola advised His Eminence the Sultan of Sokoto and the National Moon Sighting Committee in Nigeria to be strict with announcement and scrutiny when it comes to accepting claims of the moon being sighted to avoid national embarrassment and ridicule to knowledge. He said he is worried about the issue of moon sighting the way it is going now because if care is not taken, we may find ourselves back in those years where Nigeria will be the only country starting or ending Ramadan 2 days ahead of any country in the world.
He said IRFAN HILAL PROJECT is established to guide leaders on appropriate dating of the Islamic lunar months and also to refute any accepted false claim of sighting. He therefore extends his greetings to all Muslim leaders and Islamic Organizations as well as all Muslim brothers and sisters within and outside the country to enjoy a blessed Eidul Fitri celebration!
IRFAN HILAL PROJECT GROUP
