General News of Friday, 2 November 2012

Source: Frank Amponsah-The New Crusading Guide

I will reconcile Dagbon - Akufo-Addo

The Presidential Candidate for the New Patriotic Party (NPP) Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo – Addo has called for a seized fire among Abudus and Andanis to enable the great Dagbon state receive its facelift in the country.

According to him, quarrels of the past if not checked, would dominate the future of the country by holding up developmental projects.

“We don’t want quarrels of the past to happen in Ghana. We want to find a way to bring this quarrels to an end to have a secured future in our country” Nana Akufo – Addo urged lmam’s and leaders of Coalition of Islamic Education Units at an encounter in Tamale.

The Presidential candidate stressed that this running sore is not good for the country adding that leaders should use their status to find a way to promote peace and reconciliation among the two factions.

“What ever I can do for the two factions to merge I would do. I want to see Dagbon reunited, is one of the great states in the country as compared to Ashanti state” the Presidential candidate underscored.

He noted that one of the things that have made Ghana stand out in the world is religious freedom and asked the people of Dagbon to see each other as one.

Nana Addo asked them to look into the future and abandon the past.

Sheikh Issah Alhassan, leader of the Islamic Council, on his part, told the Presidential candidate that one of the sad things that the Muslim communities at large are facing under their educational unit is the lack of instructors.

This, he said has been a blockade because Ghana Education Service (GES) has stopped the recruitment of instructors.

“This situation has left some of the Arabic institutions with a few number of instructors, sometimes two or three who are expected to manage and control up to nine classrooms” he underscored.

Sheikh Alhassan, who doubles as an Islamic scholar expressed worry over the use of the Arabic language emphasizing that although Arabic is a foreign language with equal standing like other foreign languages Ghana has done very little to improve and make it attractive for studies.

“Why hasn’t GES made any attempt towards ensuring that Arabic language becomes examinable such as French” he quizzed.

Touching on infrastructural development and expansion, Sheikh Alhassan submitted that Arabic schools have been left behind; he appealing to the Presidential candidate to come to the aid of the school if elected into office come December 7.