Uphold principles of inclusivity for equitable devt - President Akufo-Addo urges Muslims
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has urged Muslims to uphold the principles of inclusivity for the equitable development of the country.
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He also appealed to Muslims to eschew all forms of divisiveness that had the potential to destroy the unity and cohesion of the country. President Akufo-Addo, who was addressing the Muslim faithful at this year’s Eid-ul-Fitr prayers at the Black Star Square in Accra yesterday, said Ramadan sought to inculcate in the Muslim adherent, the spirit of sacrifice, fellow feeling, commitment to ethical living, love of family and nation, and above all, God-consciousness.
He, therefore, urged them not to abandon these values after the passage of the month of Ramadan since the purpose of Ramadan was to instil these values in them to be kept throughout their lives.
President Akufo-Addo said these were the same values every nation needed to develop and asked that they (Muslims) made the spirit of togetherness, a national project as a nation with one destiny.
Election year
“I have made this point also, particularly because we are in an election year and there is the tendency for self-seeking people to exploit our differences in religion and ethnicity to foment division to promote narrow, parochial, sectarian and political agenda,” he emphasised.
Joining in the prayers were the wife of the Vice-President, Samira Bawumia, some ministers of state and officials from the Presidency. Interspersing his speech with quotes from the Holy Quran, President Akufo-Addo pointed out that in the age of technology and new media, which also offered people a wide degree of anonymity, “We should be careful about the spread of misinformation and disinformation, especially if such misinformation and disinformation destroy the hard-earned reputation of people.”
He called on Muslims to heed the words of Allah and be very careful so they did not destroy the reputation of people on the altar of political expediency. To that end, he said, “Let us just remember that this country is more important than our egos, interests and ambitions.”
Education
Touching on education, President Akufo-Addo said he never retreated from his conviction and belief that education was the sure way out of poverty, disease and ignorance for the country.
Some of the Muslims praying to mark the end of the Ramadan fasting and prayers at the Independence Square in Accra. Picture: SAMUEL TEI ADANO
He touched on the Free SHS programme, the educational interventions by the Zango Development Fund, and the recently launched Ghana Smart Schools project, which he said would provide some 1.3 million tablets to senior high school students, saying that all of these initiatives could only be meaningful, “If we take a keen interest in the education of our children.”
“Certainly, let us give them the standard ‘makaranta’ training but by all means let us ensure that they learn enough of the secular sciences to ensure that they become key players and well-rounded individuals in the development of the country,” the President advised and said Ghana continued to be the envy of the world on account of the religious harmony that, “We foster among adherence of different religions in a secular state which advocates religious freedom.”
He prayed that they would continue to promote religious harmony and co-existence, saying it was the essence of Islam which meant peace and submission to the will of Allah. The President was hopeful that the Vice-President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, would take over from him as President come 2025, adding, “I do not doubt that he will work with you as a Muslim to enhance the development of the Zango Development Fund to the benefit of Zango communities."
Chief Imam
Earlier in a sermon, the Spokesperson for the National Chief Imam, Sheikh Armiyawo Shaibu, said the country could not afford to lose its pride as a peaceful country over the years. He said, “We owe to ourselves as Muslims to uphold the principles of peace, fairness, and justice, among other traits which guarantee the peace of our country.”
He called on all state institutions, particularly the Electoral Commission (EC), to remain professional to guarantee fairness in this year’s elections. Sheikh Shaibu, who was interpreting the sermon by the National Chief Imam, also advised the Muslim youth to refrain from terrorising non-Muslims in the name of celebrations by flouting traffic regulations and riding motorbikes indiscriminately and on the boots of taxis.
Such actions, he said, were a complete contradiction of the tenets of Islam. Sheikh Shaibu also called on the youth to eschew all vices, intemperate language and language that divided the people to keep cohesion and unity.
“Let us all be mindful of the virtues of the fasting and eschew all the vices. For the Muslim world to develop, we have to do that with our hearts and minds, purify your hearts from the ills of covetousness and envy so that we shall become one brotherhood,” he added and urged them to be each other’s keeper and share the joy and pain of all on such an occasion.
Sheikh Shaibu further urged all Muslims to dedicate their lives to praying towards whatever difficulty confronting the country and said the country was beset with the evils of corruption which all Muslims must emerge from, having gone through the fasting to be clean.
