Muntaka M. A. R. (PhD)

“I am a king in South East Nigeria and I have the right to transfer my kingship to South Africa because I lived there before becoming a king. Yoruba people are the ones causing problems in Ghana and now in South Africa” — an Igbo man An Igbo man seen wearing a crown claims his kingship can be moved to South Africa due to prior residence there, while blaming Yoruba communities for unrest among Nigerians in Ghana and South Africa, stirring debate over ethnic tensions abroad.

Dr. Mustapha Abdul-Hamid writes: Thinking About the Clergy, Religion and Politics. This week, has been a bit hard for the representatives of God in both Islam and Christianity. People are questioning their moral turpitude in the wake of President Mahama’s declaration that he is not immediately interested in LGBTQ issues, and that as a nation there are more pressing matters that should concern us. The reason people are questioning the moral turpitude of the representatives of God is that, they were the moral choir, that gave vocal backing to the NDC, when it made the matter of LGBTQ the mainstay of political discourse in Ghana prior to the 2024 election. Indeed, a prominent one among them threatened to march to the Jubilee House to stage a protest if President Akufo-Addo did not sign the anti-LGBTQ bill. As I write, Dr. Mathew Opoku Prempeh, the NPP’s running mate in the 2024 election has filed a suit against a Muslim cleric, who on Allah’s pulpit, called on Ghanaians to vote against the NPP, because they were pro-LGBTQ and its running mate was homosexual. An Elder of the church, who is also a minister of state, and who was the lead crusader against LGBTQ in Ghana, has been under a different kind of fire, including for his turn-around on matters of LGBTQ. There is an International Conference on LGBTQ+ Activism and Political Movements (ICLAPM) going on in Ghana now. This far, only the Catholic Bishops Conference has called on President Mahama to commit to his promise in opposition to deal head-on with the issue of LGBTQ. As an academic, these developments have set me thinking about the role of religion, the clergy and politics. Let me state from the outset, that as a Muslim, I do not believe in a strict separation of church(religion) and state. Jesus may have said that, we should “give unto Caesar that which is Caesar’s and unto God, that which is God’s.” But in Islam Prophet Muhammad (SAW) was both a theological and political leader and founded a state (ummah) with a constitution. Indeed, it is the reason I belong to the conservative political tradition of the NPP. Some scholars have long argued that as scientific knowledge improves, the concept of God will gradually recede from human consciousness and will ultimately, become a rumour. While we may still be far away from that future, I worry, that the actions and inactions of the representatives of God, will actually speed up the coming of the day, when God will become a rumour. Already scholars like Abdullahi An-Naim, (2008: p.19 Islam and the Secular State: Negotiating the Future of Sharia) argue that “all Muslim men and women have the religious obligation to learn enough to decide for themselves and to express their views on matters of public concern.” The silence and the turn-around, especially when these moral voices and their families are now serving in various capacities in President Mahama’s government (some chair boards, some have their children on boards and some are members of sale of government property committees) give vent to the view that the 2024 protests against the NPP were not about restoring the moral values of our society. They were protests against exclusion from the “dinner table.”

On 15th April, President Mahama will launch the Free Primary Health Care Programme-a key campaign promise. The Programme is designed to ensure universal healthcare for Ghanaians including 35% of the population who are not on the National Health Insurance Scheme. I spent the morning of Good Friday in the company of the Minister for Health, Hon Kwabena Mintah Akandoh to inspect 24,534 pieces of medical equipment to be distributed from next week to health facilities across the country to facilitate the role out of the Free Primary Healthcare programme. The equipment include 1. X Ray Machines 2. ⁠Vital sign monitors for checking blood pressure, temperature, etc. 3. ⁠Glucometers for measuring blood sugar levels for diabetes screening. 4. ⁠Baby incubators, radiant warmers, and oxygen concentrators for resuscitating newborns after delivery. 5. ⁠Patient monitors. 6. ⁠Infusion devices. 7. ⁠Laboratory analysers, etc. 8. ⁠Delivery beds. 9. ⁠Hospital beds 10. ⁠Ultra sound

Felix Ofosu Kwakye has shared an artistic impression of the new terminal project of Accra International Airport. Can you imagine the impression was a stolen impression of Air France Bangkok. How can the Office of Government Communication engage in such misinformation?