We wish to commend the three winners of the Quranic memorisation competition. We also wish to commend the president of the Republic, His Excellency Sheikh Professor Alhaji Dr Yahya AJJ Jammeh for initiating and sponsoring such a high-profile Quranic recitation competition in the country.

His sponsorship of the competition demonstrates the conviction and devotion of the president to the virtues of Islam. Of course, this is not the first time the Gambian leader is manifesting such a magnanimous gesture towards the country's religious groups, particularly Islam.

His immense contribution in enabling Muslims perform pilgrimages to Mecca and his personal efforts towards boosting the morale of religious leaders in the country are all testimonies to the fact that promotion of peace and stability in the country is his utmost priority.

The life of a Muslim revolves around the teachings of God Almighty, through the Holy Quran and the life of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). These two happen to be the greatest sources of knowledge, wisdom and enlightenment, for living a life that pleases God Almighty, as mentioned in the Holy Quran.

Any human being who therefore creates avenues for people to learn and recite the Holy Quran is nothing but a true worshiper of Allah alone and only Allah can reward such a person for the marvelous initiative.

For the winners, we wish to call on them to utilise the victory in the competition towards the education and strengthening of the teachings of Islam, as envisaged by the initiator of the competition -President Jammeh.

We also extend a word of appreciation to the Islamic Council and the Judges who présided over the competition for the commitment and dedication to the principles of faith and ensuring that the best emerged winners. We are optimistic that the smooth conduct of the competition would serve as a morale booster for the president to stage more of such competitions.