President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has charged Christians and Muslims to do all within their power not to allow religious lines to divide the country.
He said unlike with politics, religious leaders must take deliberate steps to protect religious harmony and tolerance in the country.
Speaking at the commissioning of the National Mosque of Ghana on Friday 16 July 2021 on the forecourt of the edifice, President Akufo-Addo said even though Ghana is a Christian-majority state, the country has maintained a high level of mutual respect for religious beliefs and choices among the citizenry and this must be guarded jealously.
“The minaret of this mosque is very visible from many parts of Accra. For me, it is not just the beauty it added to Accra’s skyline that excites me necessarily. I am even more excited by the fact that, [in] a Christian-majority country, a symbol of Islam can beautifully adorn our landscape and demonstrate the beauty of religious harmony we enjoy in Ghana and which continues to be the envy of the rest of the world,” the president said.
“National Chief Imam, I just urge you to use the occasion of this ceremony to foster even further, the unity of the Muslim Ummah in Ghana and by extension, the unity of the Ghanaian people,” Akufo-Addo added.
The Ghana National Mosque Complex is a gift from Turkish philanthropists to the Ghanaian Muslim Ummah. The magnificent edifice, located in Kanda, typifies the style of Turkish-Islamic civilisation architecture.
Features
The entire facility encompasses the Grand National Mosque and a recreational centre, as well as a modern library, conference and seminar halls, senior high school, dormitory, health centre (womens clinic), guest rooms and dining hall, together with office complexes for both the project developer (the National Chief Imam) and the project managers (HUDAI, GANADER and DIYANET).
The edifice, which is on a scale unprecedented for any mosque in Ghana, was built between 2012 and 2020 with the help of the president of the Directorate for Religious Affairs of Turkey (DIYANET), the Ghana Friendship and Solidarity Association (GANADER), the Human Development Association International (HUDAI) and the Office of the National Chief Imam of Ghana.
The monument is expected to be a place of assembly for thousands of believers resident in Ghana and beyond.
Wilberforce Asare
Asaase Radio 99.5 – tune in or log on to broadcasts online
Follow us on Twitter: @asaaseradio995
#AsaaseRadio
#TheVoiceofOurLand
#WeLoveOurLand
