<<Print>>

Frank Agyekum, a former minister of information under the Kufuor-led administration has said that the religious tolerance and peaceful coexistence between Muslims and Christians in the country appear to be under threat.

It follows the raging controversy after the Wesley Girls Senior High School banned a Muslim student from fasting in the ongoing Ramadan. 

The school has since turned down a request from the Ghana Education Service (GES) to allow the student in questions to fast. The development has been met with mixed feelings with some Muslim students calling for the removal of the headmistress of the school.

According to Agyekum, a national debate on religious tolerance in schools is required.

“What is worrying, however, is that in the interim, some hotheads seem using it as pretext to ramp up disaffection as they busily try to accentuate the difference between the two bodies. Such people should be stopped and the authorities must rein them in as quickly as possible so their tirade do not escalate,” he posted on Facebook.

Agyekum added: “Most religious strife, have started this way and if left unchecked could soon degenerate into unstoppable turmoil with dire consequences for our dear nation. More importantly, perhaps, it is now time we had a national debate as a nation on religious tolerance in schools and clear directives given to all schools as to how to treat such circumstances, as in Achimota and Wesley Girls, when they arise.”

Below is the full post:

Time for cool heads.

Lately, the religious tolerance and peaceful coexistence we have been experiencing as a country, and which has been the envy of many a nation, seem to come under severe strain.

Interestingly, the schisms have occurred in some of the most prestigious second-cycle schools in our country.

First, it was the ruckus over the refusal of Achimota school to admit two brilliant Rastafarian students because it fell foul of the school’s regulations. That matter is still in court.

Then, authorities of Wesley Girls High School, arguably, the best girls school in Ghana, stopped a Muslim student from observing her Muslim obligations of fasting during this Ramadan period.

Among reasons why fasting is prohibited in the school is because it could injure the health of students and also affect their academic output. This issue has resulted in opposing and seemingly entrenched positions from the Muslim and Chritian communities which hither to had been accommodating of each and co-existed amicably.

For instance on his 100th birthday two years ago, the Chief Imam visited a Catholic church in Accra, and among the specially invited guests to his birthday celebration were numerous Christian clergy.

Indeed, it is a common and heart-warming occurrence to see the Chief Imam and Christian clergy deliberating on national issues in a peaceful and convivial manner. The two bodies have representation on the National Peace Council, which many believe has been the glue holding the two religions together.

All this seem to be put to harsh trial now as both parties try to find a way out of the present conundrum.

What is worrying, however, is that in the interim, some hotheads seem using it as pretext to ramp up disaffection as they busily try to accentuate the difference between the two bodies. Such people should be stopped and the authorities must rein them in as quickly as possible so their tirade do not escalate.

Most religious strife, have started this way and if left unchecked could soon degenerate into unstoppable turmoil with dire consequences for our dear nation. More importantly, perhaps, it is now time we had a national debate as a nation on religious tolerance in schools and clear directives given to all schools as to how to treat such circumstances, as in Achimota and Wesley Girls, when they arise.