Assessing the Ibadhiyyah Muslims approach to Da’wah in Ghana: A case study in Wenchi and Techiman.

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November, 2016
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Abstract
The Ibadhiyyah doctrine was officially introduced in Ghana by Shaikh Alhaji Umar Adam Suleman in 2000, after the Sunni-Tijaniyyah conflict that led to loss of lives and property in Wenchi. The founder initially identified himself with the Ahlu-Sunnah group after having received the Ibadhiyyah orientation from the sultanate of Oman. The main aim of this work is to examine the Da’wah (propagation) approach of the group and how that has contributed to the development of Muslims in Wenchi and Techiman. Having emerged in Ghana for over a decade and half, the Da’wah activities and contributions of Ibadhiyyah (Istiqaamah) seemed to have escaped scholarly attention for academic pursuit. The work therefore gears towards documenting the activities of the group. The researcher employed both qualitative and quantitative techniques in collecting and analyzing the data. In addition, interviews and questionnaires were administered as instruments for data collection.The active participant observation technique was also used by the researcher to attend Ibadhiyyah programmes such as preaching, seminars, workshops, commissioning of mosques and schools to observe their activities in order to help draw some conclusions.The study revealed that theologically, the Ibadhiyyah doctrine in Ghana initially drew members from the Sunni-group since the leadership the two were together before the split in Wenchi. Later the relationship between the Ahlu-Sunnah and Ibadhiya was characterized by polemics in preaching from both sides especially on radio and mosque discussions. However, the relationship between the group and the other Islamic groups in the two towns remained very cordial.Muslim Da’wah should therefore be void of polemical language or comments that have the tendency to create unnecessary tension and fear in society. The research is relevant because it has documented the history and activities of the group and also served as a pioneering study on Ibadhiyyah in Ghana.
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This thesis is submitted to the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the award of a master of Philosophy degree in Religious Studies,
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