The Coalition of Concerned Muslims of Ghana and the Association of Liberal Muslims-Ghana are calling on Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh, the running mate of the NPP, also known as NAPO, to disclose the identities of imams he claims were hired by the National Democratic Congress (NDC) to support Comprehensive Sexuality Education (CSE) in schools that includes LGBTQ+ content.
The organisation has given three days to withdraw or apologise.
During a recent campaign event in Kumasi, NAPO, the New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) running mate for the forthcoming election, said that Hon. Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, the former Deputy Education Minister, spearheaded attempts to implement a curriculum that had contentious elements*, including LGBTQ+ material.
His remarks, which have angered both Muslim leaders and followers, said that imams and pastors were enlisted to back the project.
In a press release on Thursday, October 24, Alhaji Umar Harris, Executive Secretary of the Association of Liberal Muslims-Ghana, said, “This unfounded charge against us is nothing but a wilful attempt to damage our reputation and a mockery of Islam and Muslims in Ghana.”
“We are calling on NAPO to either emphatically mention the names of those imams he claimed were contracted or, as a matter of urgency, retract and apologise to the Muslim community,” it said.
The group made it clear that they had opposed the introduction of CSE in Ghanaian schools from the beginning, especially when it contained material they believed to be at odds with Ghanaian traditional values and Islamic teachings.
They claim that any participation in curriculum promotion by Muslim religious leaders is a lie intended to harm the standing of the Muslim community.
NAPO has been cautioned by the association that if they don’t comply with their demands, there may be more public reactions.
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