Tribute by Mustafa bhai Pirmohamed
The news of the death of our colleague and head of Africa Federation Archives Section, Alhaj Murtaza R. Jivraj – Murtaza Kerbala came with great shock.
Working with him in the Archives Section has helped me a lot in getting insight into some historical events in our community. A day before he died, he sent me a flyer of Panjo Uganda. Usually he would call soon after sending any such information and elaborate on it. He did not and I regret not to have called him immediately to discuss about it. I had observed that in recent months his calls had become more frequent either giving information or looking for information. He was a reservoir of community history. Whenever I would send him a message with an enquiry he would prefer to call back and elaborate. The discussion would be pleasantly long.
A week before his death he asked me to send him a list of Marhumeen buried in Dar es Salaam from the Marhumeen project. I asked him if he wanted a list which I prepared every January or an updated one. He asked for an updated one. The list had 3199 names. Sadly his name was next in the list – 3200.
During every visit to Dar, I dutifully visited Murtazabhai at his office at Geo-Micro along Mosque Street. He would show me his most recent collections and I would take a few pictures of selected collections. He would relate some old stories which would interest me and we would mutually share information.
Some of the things about our community which I learned a lot from Murtaza bhai were: finer details of the operations of the Boarding House in early 60s, the Foundation Fund trip of Africa Federation Chairman, Marhum Haji Ebrahim Sheriff Dewji and his team all over East Africa, the history of Kigoma and Bukoba Jamaats and history of his ancestors in India. We tried to publish them in the weekly Archives Bulletins.
I came to know Murtaza bhai in the mid-70s mainly as the Juloos person, taking care of the PA system and keenly involved in the organization of Juloos. He was also seen recording majalis and other events with his video-recorder with the dedication one would envy. His dedication to volunteering for the community was exceptional.
His death has robbed the community of one of its most dedicated and hard-working volunteers. His services started at a very young age and covered many areas – Juloos, Volunteer Corp, Media, Daawah, Tabligh and Archives of community history, among others. We will surely miss him a lot. May Allah reward Marhum Murtaza bhai amply for his efforts, grant him a high status in Jannah and give sabr to his family. Ameen.
Tribute from Zaheera Alishan Raza – Admin Secretary of Archives Section
“You carve your name on hearts, not tombstones. A legacy is etched into the minds of others and the stories they share about you.”
It has just been 5 months that I had the opportunity of closely working with Marhum and within this short time Murtaza Uncle was instrumental in providing me with knowledgeable advice and support. He had a wealth of knowledge and a deep passion for preserving the history of the community and passing on to the coming generations.
His famous lines were always, “A community that forgets its past has no future and those who failed to learn from history are doomed to report it.”
It was an honor to work with him and we shall continue to uphold his passion that was so dear to him. He will surely be missed immensely and we pray to the Almighty Allah (s.w.t) to elevate his status amongst His Pure and Chosen ones. Ameen.
Message from Arifa bai Somji – Member of Archives Section
Marhum Murtaza Uncle joined the Archives Section in 2016 and I have had the privilege of working with him since then. He continually inspired me to do my best and helped me strive for my goals. I found guidance, mentorship and kindness – everything in one person. His work spoke for itself – he was indeed a man who believed in action rather than words.
Murtaza Uncle helped me shape my knowledge and interest in our community history and heritage to which I shall remain indebted to him. Inshallah, we shall continue following in his vision and spread the awareness of history to the community at large and pray to the Almighty to grant him a lofty station with the Maasumeen (a.s).
Archives Section in particular will miss his visits every Saturday and his humorous demeanor which made him a special person.
May Allah (SWT) by His infinite mercy and grace grant Marhum Murtaza bhai Jivraj a lofty status and place him in the proximity of Ahlulbayt (AS), Ameen. A request for Sura-e-Fateha for him and for all the Marhumeen.
SECRETARIAT
ARCHIVES SECTION OF THE AFRICA FEDERATION
10th April 2021 / 27th Shaban 1442 A.H