Abu Dhabi: His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Abu Dhabi Crown Prince and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, on Thursday visited an Afghani carpet seller, who had, in 2017, refused to sell a picture of the late Shaikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan.
Clip showing man refusing to sell Zayed’s picture goes viral
In a series of tweets, Shaikh Mohammad Bin Zayed posted pictures of his visit to the shop of Musa Khan, in the Mina Zayed market in Abu Dhabi.
هذا ''بابا زايد'' كلمتان عفويتان.. لصاحب محل سجاد أفغاني سعدت بزيارته اليوم.. كان لهما وقع كبير في النفس.. عبر بهما عن رمزية زايد ومحبته ومكانته في قلبه عندما عرض عليه شراء سجادة بمحله تحمل صورة الوالد زايد.. رغم العرض والالحاح إلا أنه رفض بشدة.. قصة وفاء سطرها زايد بإنسانيته pic.twitter.com/e1P5H49cHw
— محمد بن زايد (@MohamedBinZayed) February 22, 2018
الامارات تنسج بنهجها الخير الذي أرساه زايد أنموذجا عالميا في التسامح والتعايش ..كسبت به قلوب الملايين حول العالم .. هنالك الكثيرون على امتداد الوطن يكنون المحبة لنا في قلوبهم.. يتعايشون معنا ... ويشاطروننا أحلامنا وتطلعاتنا.. لهؤلاء جميعا نقول الإمارات بلدكم الثاني .. pic.twitter.com/K1HNHgd2W0
— محمد بن زايد (@MohamedBinZayed) February 22, 2018
"'This is Baba Zayed'…two words spoken spontaneously by an Afghani carpet seller whom I was very pleased to meet today," Shaikh Mohammed said in a tweet.
He was referring to the words repeatedly spoken by Musa Khan in a video that had gone viral in October last year.
"This is Baba Zayed. This picture is not for sale," the man said repeatedly in the video in response to an Emirati man’s persistent offer to buy an old photo of Shaikh Zayed in his shop.
In his tweet, Shaikh Mohammad said: "These words are moving, and through them he expressed his love for Zayed and the founding father’s high stature in his heart. A man came into his shop offering to buy a picture of Shaikh Zayed, and even though the man was insistent, the shop owner vehemently refused. It is indeed a story of loyalty, forged by Shaikh Zayed’s humanity."
"Through a philanthropic approach set by Shaikh Zayed, the UAE is setting a global model for tolerance and coexistence. This approach has won the hearts of millions around the world. There are many people around the nation who harbour love for us and coexist with us. They share our dreams and aspirations, and to them we say: The UAE is your second home," tweeted Shaikh Mohammad.
Gulf News published an interview of Khan on October 23 in which he said "I will not sell this picture even for a million dirhams."
He could not express his feelings when we contacted him after Shaikh Mohammad’s visit on Thursday.
"It was a big surprise for me. I could not express my feelings."
He said Shaikh Mohammad entered the shop and asked "where is the picture of Baba Zayed…where is Musa Khan?"
"Then he asked me why you do not want to sell Baba Zayed’s picture? I saw you in a clip and you refused to sell the picture."
"I told him I love Baba Zayed …I pray for his soul every day...I love Baba Zayed and all his family."
Shaikh Mohammad asked about Khan’s father who went to Afghanistan as he is not feeling well.
"My father is supposed to return to the UAE next month and Shaikh Mohammad promised to visit the shop again next month to meet my father," a jubilant Khan said.
His father Abdul Khader had started his carpet business in Abu Dhabi 40 years ago.
Khader and his partner had bought 10 pictures of Shaikh Zayed in 1980. Some of them were kept in the partner’s shop in Al Ain and others in Abu Dhabi.
"This black and white picture has been in the shop since its opening in 1994 when late Shaikh Zayed ordered the establishment of the market," Khan said earlier adding that it was unacceptable for the owners, partners and employees of the shop to sell the picture as their love for Shaikh Zayed is priceless.
