Filipinos in UAE thank Allah for blessings

Dubai: For Filipina expatriate Amal Nuqui celebrating Eid Al Fitr every year is extra special as it is testament to Allah’s blessings to her and her family for the past two decades since she embraced Islam.

Nuqui, 49, a businesswoman, celebrated the first day of Eid in Dubai with her family, starting with an early morning prayer at the Eid Musalla in Deira. Like many Muslims, Nuqui said never an Eid day goes by without thanking Allah for the endless blessings he has bestowed upon her family.

“The best thing that happened to me in Dubai is not having millions in my bank accounts, but finding truth in Islam,” Nuqui, a mother of two, told Gulf News.

Nuqui, an engineer, embraced Islam in 1991 after coming to Dubai in 1988. A devout Catholic in her younger years, Nuqui said she had always had questions about life and the afterlife. It was when she studied Islam that she got what she had been longing for.

“In Islam I found peace. I found all the answers to my questions. And I learned to cast all my worries in Allah,” Nuqui said.

Nuqui said she is blessed to have witnessed about 95 per cent of her family embrace Islam for the past 20 years by seeing Allah’s faithfulness in her life.

“Every year, we are happy when we celebrate Eid because Alhamdulillah we’re alive and we can experience the blessed month. Our prayer is for Allah to grant us another year next year,” she added.

After their morning prayers, a traditional Filipino breakfast awaited Nuqui and her family, including her four grandchildren. Nuqui said it was important that the first meal after a month-long fast was shared by the whole family.

Although Nuqui’s husband couldn’t make it for the first day of Eid as he was stationed in Fujairah, Nuqui said he would join the family celebrations on the second day of Eid. The whole family will be driving to a resort in Ras Al Khaimah on the second day of Eid to enjoy the rest of the Eid holidays.

As per tradition, Nuqui distributed Eidiya (Eid gifts) to her grandchildren. Nuqui said that since embracing Islam, she has become more open to sharing whatever she has. “I have learned to be very generous and rely on Allah to provide for me and my family. And he has never failed,” Nuqui said.