DCE appeals to Muslims to use Ramadan to end Bawku conflict

Gomoa Simbrofo, Sept. 23, GNA - The District Chief Executive for Gomoa West, Mr. Theophilus Adioo-Mensah, has appealed to Muslims to use the spirit of forgiveness and unity which the Ramadan fasting bestowed on them to influence their non-Muslim counterparts in Bawku to forget the past and bury the hatchet.

He said the Bawku conflict was not a problem for the people of the area alone but a national one and urged all Ghanaians to pray for its early resolution.

"Ghana cannot know peace whilst a part is boiling in conflict," Mr. Adioo-Mensah said when addressing Ahmadiyya Muslim Mission at Gomoa Simbrofo near Apam during the Eid-ul-Fitr prayers. He said indulgence received from the fasting would be meaningless if they should go back to attack their opponents. Mr. Aidoo-Mensah appealed to the leadership of Mamprusis and Kusasis to seek an amicable solution through dialogue and urged peace keepers to remain neutral as building trust and confidence in the people could facilitate the peace process.

At similar prayers at Gomoa Abora by Ankamo circuit of the Muslim Mission, Sheikh Hussein Kassim, District Imam, urged members to pursue the tenets of the Ramadan fasting after the Eid- ul-Fitr. He said the fear of God, patience and the truth that were important elements in the fasting were also relevant in the development of their communities.

Sheikh Kassim said since the importance of Ramadan fasting was to strengthen relationship between mankind and God, Muslims must first reconcile with people they were not in good terms with in order to please God. He urged them to invest in the education of their children and also register with the National Health Insurance Scheme. They prayed for the leadership of the nation, the regions and the districts. 2