RIYADH, 7 November 2004 — Abdul Karim A. Noh of Riyadh came up with a perfect score to win first prize in the Philippine Embassy’s Kingdomwide Third Qur’an Reading Contest on Thursday.
By prevailing over 12 other contestants, Abdul Karim went home with an Acer laptop computer with printer, scanner and web cam worth SR5,000. In addition, he got a cash prize of SR3,000 from Samba Financial Group, a round-trip ticket from Jeddah to Manila from Qatar Airways, and perfume from Sara Corp.
Taking second place was Abdulaziz Ahmad, an imam who was the overall winner in the Qur’an contest held at the Philippine Consulate General in Jeddah on Oct. 28.
Absamin Radia Arig of Madinah University placed third, Ainodden Imam of King Saud University was fourth and Aminodden Mohammad Salih of Islamic University in Madinah placed fifth.
In his speech during the occasion, Ambassador Bahnarim Guinomla said the contest aims to encourage members of the Filipino Muslim community in the Kingdom to know more about, and familiarize themselves with, the Holy Qur’an.
Guests were all praises for the embassy for holding the contest.
“It’s one way of making the bond among Muslims stronger,” said Dr. Fuhaid M. Al-Howaimel, assistant secretary-general for offices and international relations of the World Assembly of Muslim Youth (WAMY).
Malaysian Ambassador Wan Mokhtar Ahmad said the contest enables “Muslims to gather and meet and get to know each other. I hope that it will be held again next year.”
“The Philippine Embassy has exerted great efforts in the preparation of the contest,” chimed in Sri Lankan Ambassador Ibrahim Sahib Ansar.
The second prize winner got a Pentax digital camera from GAMA Al-Moushegah Arabia, Ltd, SR2,000 from Samba and Jeddah-Cebu-Jeddah ticket from Qatar Airways.
The other winners also got a variety of prizes, including cash prizes from Samba, a Nokia mobile phone from Saudi Marketing Company, perfumes from Sara Corp; Akai radio cassette recorders from Hamoud Recruitment Agency; watches from Al-Hussaini and Co., and a 25-inch TV set from Usman Navarro, regional manager of the Philippine National Bank.
