Interior CS Kindiki gazettes Wednesday as public holiday

Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki at the National Assembly on June 20, 2023. [Elvis Ogina,Standard]

Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki has gazetted Wednesday, June 28, 2023, as a public holiday.

The holiday will be used to mark Eid-Ul-Adha.

"It is notified for the general information of the public that in exercise of the powers conferred by section 2 (2) and part II of the schedule, as read with section 3 of the Public Holidays Act, the Cabinet Secretary for Interior and National Administration declares that Wednesday, June 28, 2023, shall be a public holiday to mark Eid-Ul-Adha (Idd-Ul-Azha)," reads the notice.

Idd-ul-Adha is an Islamic festival that marks the end of Hajj, the annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca.

Also known as Eid al-Adha (Sacrifice Feast), the feast is celebrated to honour the willingness of Ibrahim to sacrifice his son Ishmael as an act of obedience to Allah. Allah provided a sheep for Ibrahim to sacrifice instead. During the feast, Muslims re-enact Ibrahim's obedience by sacrificing a cow or ram.

The family will then eat about a third of the meal while another third is shared by friends and relatives. The remaining third is donated to the poor and needy.

It often falls on the 10th day of Dhu al-Hijjah, the twelfth and final month in the Islamic calendar.

As the exact day is based on lunar sightings, the date may vary between countries.

Additional Reporting; Sara Okuoro