The youth in Lamu are barely attending prayers in mosques in recent times and clerics in the region are alarmed, a report released by clerics indicates
Lamu town and the majority of the archipelago is a categorized as a Muslim hub due to the high number of mosques and the fact that Islam is the most dominant religion.
However, despite this, it has been established that less than 40 percent of young people in the region have been consistently attending daily prayers in mosques.
Lamu Island alone is home to over 35 mosques whose attendance has now been left to the elderly men who keep up appearances while the younger ones wander around.
During a report that was released by clerics in the county on Monday, it was established that the majority of those dodging mosque sessions are aged between 16 to 24 years old.
The report which was sponsored by the Association of Lamu Muslim Clerics and carried out within a six-month period targeted Lamu Old Town, Shella, Kizingitini, Faza, Siyu, Pate, and other islands of the county which are predominantly Muslim.
While reading the report to the media, cleric Mahmoud Abdulkadir said this particular group had totally kept away from mosques and as clerics, they are interested in knowing where they are during prayer time.
He cited poor parenting as a key reason behind the behaviour change by most youth who continue to shy away from mosques and explained that many parents had failed to effectively cultivate durable faith in the lives of their children hence the waywardness.
In Islam, at seven years of age, a young boy is ready and allowed to start going to the mosque for prayers, a lifestyle he needs to uphold until his last breath.
Every Muslim is obligated to pray five times a day - Fajr, Zuhr, Asr, Maghrib, and Isha (at dawn, post noon, during the evening, at the evening, and at night).
The prayer called Salah is prayed in the congregation every day at dawn, post noon, during the evening, at the evening, and at night.
The cleric however said it has become a worrying trend for men to head to the mosques while leaving their grown sons at home instead of having them accompany them to the mosque for prayers.
“A father will wake up and come to the mosque yet at home, he leaves his grown son snoring away. This is what we are calling careless parenting. Every Muslim knows that by age seven, a young boy must start going to the mosque,” said Abdulkadir.
He warned that the trend would result in a spiritually and morally retarded generation if not addressed promptly.
“Even those who attend prayers do so inconsistently. They prefer certain days and times like Friday prayers only or just during Ramadhan which shouldn’t be the case. The rest of the days, they are nowhere to be found. The mosques are now left to the elders and it’s a shame,” he said.
Imam Yusuf Omar of Kizingitini in Lamu East cited drugs and the internet as the major distractors which he described as having taken the youth hostage.
“They would rather smoke away their lives on bhang, heroin and all that stuff or chew miraa like goats while glued on Tiktok and WhatsApp instead of praying. They are indeed lost,” said Omar.
He however warned that the trend is a dangerous one both to the local communities and the country at large as such youth who are not religiously and morally grounded can easily become a threat to security as they are easy to radicalize and recruit into terror organizations.
“We actually need to worry and do something before the other side begins to take advantage of the situation. It can be so bad for the country,” he said.
Cleric Athman Hassan stated that the easiest way to ensure children dont fall into drugs and bad influence is to monitor their daily activities and ensure they religiously attend prayers to receive spiritual and moral nourishment.
“You must make it your business to know where your child is at all times, who they are with and what they are doing. If they are not in school or on an errand, they must go to the mosque. We are asking parents to talk to their kids and be in sync with their lives,” he said.