Key Muslim bodies to serve on Hajj committee
President John Dramani Mahama has asked key Muslim organisations to nominate representatives to serve on the National Hajj Committee (NHC).
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The representatives are to assist the Co-ordinator of the NHC, Alhaji Abdul Rauf Ibrahim Tanko, to ensure the successful organisation of Hajj in the country.
President Mahama made this known last Friday, during a courtesy call on him by members of the Muslim Caucus in Parliament.
Members of the caucus were at the Flagstaff House to congratulate President on his assumption of the highest office of the land and to thank him for his support to Muslims.
The President congratulated the previous members of the NHC on improving the organisation of the Hajj in the country.
He said the dissolution of the membership of the NHC and the subsequent appointment of the Co-ordinator for this year's Hajj was to bring about a change and more efficiency in its organisation.
President Mahama said he had sent letters to stakeholder organisations, including the Office of the National Chief Imam, the Ahlussunna Wal Jama'a, the Coalition of Muslim Organisations, Ghana (COMOG) and the Federation of Muslim Women Association (FOMWAG), to nominate the people that they felt could contribute to achieving more success in the management of Hajj affairs.
He indicated that the NHC would enforce the rules in terms of respecting the deadline for the payment of Hajj fares this year.
The deadline for the payment of this year's Hajj fare, which has been pegged at $3,450, is August 17, 2013, while the first flight is scheduled for September 17, 2013.
Speaking generally about the situation of Muslims in Ghana, President Mahama said Muslim communities were the most deprived in the country due to historical antecedent.
He said the acquisition of secular education was one of the greatest challenges facing the Muslim communities.
The President, therefore, commended the Muslim Caucus in Parliament for raising GH¢100,000 in the Zakat Fund to support brilliant and needy Muslim students.
He pledged to make a donation to the fund, and promised to continue to contribute to the sustenance of the fund.
On the Ramadan fast, President Mahama said the fact that the election petition case had coincided with the Holy month meant that Ghana would continue to enjoy peace and maintain its image as a beacon of peace and democracy, no matter the outcome of the case.
He asked Muslims to continue to pray for continuous peace and development in the country.
The Spokesperson of the Parliamentary Caucus in Parliament, Dr Ahmed Yakubu Alhassan, thanked President Mahama for his numerous support to Muslims in Ghana.
For instance, he said, through President Mahama's effort, Muslims now had an air-conditioned Hajj Village near the Kotoka International Airport and another one in Tamale.
Besides, he said, the organisation of Hajj had improved to the extent that all pilgrims were taken to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for the pilgrimage without any hitches.
He said President Mahama's appointment of Alhaji Tanko to co-ordinate the organisation of Hajj soon after his swearing-in, attested to his commitment to the cause of Muslims.
On the Zakat Fund, Dr Alhassan said membership had grown from 54 to 250 while the fund had grown from GH¢12,000 in 2010 to GH¢100,000 in 2013.
He said 40 brilliant and needy Muslim students would benefit from the fund this year while 50 youth would be given sewing machines and assisted to learn tailoring.
Already, he said, the fund had supported a female Ghanaian Muslim student who was studying medicine in China.
Dr Alhassan urged faith-based institutions to allow Muslim students to observe their prayers without any hindrance, since the country's constitution guaranteed freedom of worship.
By Musah Yahaya Jafaru/Daily Graphic/Ghana