Cherished Memories of Africa — Page 216
198 Farafenni. He told me that there is a town in Senegal called Guinguineo located at quite a distance further away from Kaolack and a few miles from there is a Fulani village comprising of a few houses. In that village he had a relative who wanted to get information about the jama’at. I promised that we would definitely visit him, insha-Allah and convey the message of truth. Accordingly, one day Ahmad Ly and myself boarded a vehicle from Farafenni and reached Kaolack. From there we got on to another old vehicle and set out for Guinguineo. Half way down the track, the vehicle broke down and could not be repaired. After a long wait, we carried our bags and walked to Guinguineo in extremely hot weather. From there, we reached the village on a cart and went to see the man, probably named Mari Bah. He could speak a bit of Arabic. He welcomed us and then we started talking about the jama’at till late in the night and restarted in the morning. Mari Bah appreciated the talk but said that he could not become an Ahmadi. We returned rather disappointed. We walked to Guinguineo and then, changing several vehicles, reached Farafenni. Food was a big problem throughout the journey. It was hot weather and lack of a transport facility added to our worries. Moreover, we had worked hard for one person and he did not become an Ahmadi. However, that was an everyday experience. Then through Divine Grace, about twenty years later started a series of bai’ats at several places. Two MPs from the area became Ahmadis. They invited me repeatedly and accepting that I went on a tour of the area. I told my companions that first of all we will go to Sare Mari and that is where we went. There were only a few broken-down houses. We spread our prayer mats under a