First Name:
Liakatali
Location:
Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
Hijiri Date of Death:
5 Ramadhan 1436
Hijiri Date of Burial:
5 Ramadhan 1436
Last Name:
Akberali Khimji
Date of death:
22/06/2015
Date of Burial:
22/06/2015
Announcement Body:
We regret to inform you of the sad demise of Marhum Liakatali Akberali Khimji who passed away in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania on Monday 22 June 2015, 5 Ramadhan 1436. The Marhum will be buried there on the same day. Mumineen are requested to remember the Marhum in their prayers
Comments
From Sajjad Tejani
Submitted by iqbalp on
LIAKAT KHIMJI “THE UNSUNG HERO”
I had intended to write to Uncle Liakat Khimji to thank him for all his generous and selfless contributions he made to the sports circle in Dar-es-Salaam. A great batsman and a good Volleyball service man. Come sun or shine, he was there in his service position never missing a practice session at Boarding House. He always was first to put his hands in his pocket to buy soft drinks for all his colleagues.
A staunch Simba fan, he loved going to watch them and never liked going alone. He always took his friends and made sure he footed the bill for the entire afternoon including the tickets to enter the National Stadium. As my father’s close friend, I had the privilege to join on them on several occasions and he treated me like his own child. Whenever, I was shy of something he offered to me in terms of a soda or nuts, he said don’t worry your dad won’t mind.
About three years ago, I had decided to write and thank him for his generosity as in the hustle and bustle of teenage life, I never got to show my appreciation to him. Then I decided that I will thank him in person which I deeply regret especially after receiving the sad news of his demise yesterday 22 June 2015, 5th of the Holy month of Ramadhan 1436. What point in writing about the good times we had going to the football matches now that he is no more. I wish I had penned my appreciation in his lifetime, a lesson I shall never forget.
A man who balanced his life between sport, work and family. He would work hard in his famous shop “Mwangaza Stores” from Monday to Saturday afternoons. He would play volleyball during the weekdays in the evening, go and watch Simba football club on Saturday afternoons after work and keep his Sundays for the family. After a round of Oysterbay on Sundays, he would make sure to come to mosque and at the expense of making his family wait whilst he attended his prayer. He had a special prayer place right at the back of the mosque where he would pray with ease and once finished would speak to a few friends before joining his family back for dinner.
Most of my memories are watching him playing volleyball. However, I remember one Saturday Cricket game between Union Sports Club and Coast Gymkhana (now Annadil Burhani) in the 1980s. Coast Gymkhana batted first and put up a reasonable total. Union suffered a collapse and needed a rescue. Surprise Surprise, it was Liakat Khimji and Amir Yusuf who saw the team win comfortably in the end. At one point Coast Gymkhana thought they would easily win but it was not to be so. As a young boy I realised that day that in Cricket results are never predictable and that it’s not always the openers or middle order batsmen who win you a match. Anyone with character and determination can see you through and he demonstrated it well on the sports field.
After he retired from Cricket, he still used to take keen interest in following Union Sports Club games and if they won any tournaments, he was the first to dish out the goodies. I remember in 1990, Union S C losing to Agakhan CC in the Saturday knock-out final. He was very hurt. In a few weeks’ time the two teams met again in the Sunday knock-out finals and this time Union learnt from their mistakes and won. He was so happy that he threw a treat to the whole squad including myself as the Scorer to a dinner at the then Rendezvous restaurant on Samora Avenue. This was just one in a hundred of treats he offered to his friends and family during his life.
He had it in him that whenever it came time to pay, he was always the first to pull out his wallet. His generosity knew no bounds. At the same time he never wanted publicity for his noble actions and that is what makes me motivated to write about him today. I am sure so many times he helped people without his family and friends knowing about it.
I dedicate the following tradition to him from the Holy Prophet (SAWW) which I heard from one of my teachers, about giving without publicity.
Allah created the earth and it began to shake. Then Allah created the mountains and put them on it. Then the earth became stable. The angels marvelled at the strength of the mountains.
They said: O Lord, is there anything in your creation which is stronger than mountains? Allah said: Yes, iron. They said: O Lord, is there anything in your creation which is stronger than iron? Allah said: Yes, Fire. They said: O Lord, is there anything in your creation that is stronger than fire? Allah said: Yes, water. They said: O Lord, is there anything in your creation that is stronger than water? Allah said: Yes, wind.
They said: O Lord, is there anything in your creation that is stronger than wind?
Allah said: Yes, a person who gives charity with his right hand and hides it from his left hand.
The regret of not taking action to acknowledge my appreciation to him during his lifetime, will always bite me. I am sure that the Almighty will reward him amply for his selfless efforts to make the ones around him always happy and comfortable. He always liked to share as opposed to enjoy himself alone. This trait of his will always stand out when he is remembered.
With grief and sadness of losing a man who never expected acknowledgement, whom I wanted to sincerely thank but missed the opportunity. Sorry Uncle Liaket, no one expected you to leave us so suddenly but we submit to the Will of the Lord and Thank Him to have given us a personality like yourself.