Council cites escalating tensions between ethnic factions; security locks down facility to prevent violence
The Nandom Traditional Council has ordered the immediate closure of the Nandom Central Mosque following renewed tensions over a long-standing leadership dispute. The directive, announced at an emergency public briefing on Thursday, was delivered by the Divisional Chief of Ko on behalf of the Paramount Chief of Nandom, Naa Prof. Edmund N. D. Chiir VIII.
Armed personnel from the Municipal Security Council (MUSEC) escorted traditional elders to the mosque, where they physically locked the premises. The Council warned that “any group or individual who attempts to forcibly reopen the mosque will be arrested and kept in custody until further directives are issued.”
The rare but decisive intervention follows weeks of mounting friction between two major factions within the Muslim community—the Mossi group and a bloc of minority settler communities comprising the Kanjaga, Dagomba, Fulbe, Waala, and Sisaala ethnic groups.
LONG-STANDING DISPUTE OVER IMAMSHIP REIGNITES
Speaking at the briefing, the Divisional Chief noted that the chieftaincy-like dispute over who should lead the mosque has dragged on since 2012, after the death of the then Nandom Imam. According to sources close to the mosque’s leadership, the conflict began when two candidates—one supported by the Mossi community and the other by the Kanjaga community—each laid claim to succeed the late Imam.
The rivalry intensified over the years, at times turning violent, prompting intervention by the Traditional Council and state security agencies. As a temporary solution, a neutral cleric from Wa was assigned to lead Friday prayers, an arrangement that restored relative calm from 2012 until the end of 2024. However, that fragile peace recently collapsed.
TRIGGER: NEUTRAL IMAM STOPS COMING; FACTIONS RE-MOBILIZE
Deep-source information within the Muslim community indicates that the Wa-based leader who had been conducting Friday prayers unexpectedly stopped attending in recent months. This vacuum reportedly emboldened the Mossi faction to reopen the mosque and resume prayers under the leadership of their preferred successor—this time with a security escort. The move infuriated members of the Kanjaga and allied minority groups, who interpreted it as a unilateral takeover. Tensions rose sharply as they began mobilizing to confront the Mossi worshippers at the mosque. According to observers, the situation was on the verge of erupting into open conflict, compelling the Traditional Council to intervene swiftly to “protect the peace that Nandom enjoys.”
COUNCIL CALLS FOR CALM; SECURITY MAINTAINS LOCKDOWN
The Traditional Council has appealed to all factions to exercise restraint and respect the closure while broader consultations continue. Security personnel remain stationed around the mosque to prevent clashes.
The Council says its decision is aimed at allowing room for mediation and preventing the mosque from becoming a flashpoint for violence in the municipality. A cave yard was, however, given that “if tomorrow the feuding factions come and tell us that they have amicably resolved their differences, we shall not hesitate to open the Mosque”
Residents and community observers hope the intervention will pave the way for a sustainable, peaceful resolution to a dispute that has haunted Nandom’s Muslim community for more than a decade.
Source: Nandom FM
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