Browsing by Author "Seidu, Ahmad"

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    Accountability in Religious Circles: Case Study of the Kumasi Central Mosque
    (2012) Seidu, Ahmad
    Muslims both from northern Ghana and beyond its frontiers, mainly from Nigeria and other West African States converged in Kumasi to subsequently form the Muslim community. This community however was not only composed of migrants but also those who are indigenes of Kumasi to become the Asante Muslims and commonly referred to as the Asante Nkramo. This Muslim community built the Kumasi Central Mosque which is the focus of our study since its inception in the early 1950s. The Kumasi Central Mosque remains the symbol of unity and integration of the Muslim community. Yet despite the unity, it has undergone some disputes in terms of leadership as well as the control of the Mosque. Two personalities have dominated the politics of the Mosque for so long – Amadu Baba and Malam Mutawakilu who had both become the sakin zongo of Kumasi. Control over ownership of the Mosque had divided the front of the Muslim leadership in Kumasi that nearly marred the integration and unity of the community. Two blocs had fought over the leadership in terms of Imamship of the Mosque- the Muslim Mission and the Muslim Community- that led to court actions. This thesis argues on the responsibility and accountability of the financial aspects as well as the leadership of the Mosque. It also suggests the mutual agreement between the Muslim Mission and the Muslim Community. The two blocs agreed to come to terms in an arbitration headed by the Busia administration that led to the selection of an Imam from the Muslim Community and the deputy from the Muslim Mission. The concession led to a relative peace and harmony in the Muslim community. The Central Mosque remains, despite all these disputes, the focal point and symbol of unity and perhaps disunity among the Muslim community in Kumasi