Saturday,
June 15, 2013
I continue to marvel at the
extent to which the NPP is exploiting religious fervour to pursue its political
aspirations, especially at a time that its sad fate at Election 2012 has been
sealed and President Mahama continues to consolidate his hold on power.
The news is that a “blood
sacrifice” has been done for its Akufo-Addo and prayers offered to God to help him
win the Election 2012 Petition now before the Supreme Court so that he can
become Ghana’s President.
According
to the report on the ceremony, Mallam Olu led the prayers at the Nasariyya
Mosque at Aboabo Number Two in Kumasi, which were “intermittently laced with
recital of the Holy Qur’an”. Then, a fat sheep (should it not have been
a RAM instead?) was slaughtered
at the forecourt of the mosque and
the meat distributed to the people to thank Allah for His mercy.
The
event was sponsored by Dr. Amoako Tuffuor, a leading member of NPP. We
are told that Nana Antwi, the defeated NPP parliamentary candidate for Asawase,
and other influential officials in the Ashanti Region graced the occasion.
So also did ardent NPP members at Asawase and other parts of Kumasi.
(See: http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/artikel.php?ID=276961)
There we go, folks. The odd admixture
of religion and politics is in full view. And a “blood sacrifice” to confirm
it! The big picture is clear: exploitation of Muslim religious fervour on this
occasion, which worries me—and must worry all others too—for what it portends.
Is someone cunningly exploiting religion to set up a time-bomb?
My study of “Qur’anic
Hermeneutics” and the “Hadiths/Sunna of the Prophet Muhammad” in courses on “Religious
Studies” in my undergraduate studies at the University of Cape Coast taught me
a lot to admire about Islam.
No wonder, in a national essay
competition conducted by the Iranian Embassy in Ghana in 1998, I won the third
prize, which amazed the organizers because I was a Christian, not a Muslim to
persuade them in my essay on “The significance of the Hajj”.
I have just blown my own horn to
launch my examination of why I consider the exploitation of the religious
fervour of the Muslim community for petty political jingoism is not only
dangerous but is also an extreme instance of desperation on the part of
Akufo-Addo. By this statement, I don’t mean to suggest that it is only Muslims
who can be exploited to this extent; but I have a good cause for zeroing in on
this area, considering what I have noticed unfolding.
I know much about Islam and its
underpinnings as far as its precepts, injunctions, and prohibitions concerning the
totality of human existence are concerned.
I know also that when
unsuspecting religious zealots become politically proselytized, they constitute
a huge burden for the system. If you doubt my claim, look no further than the involvement
of the Boko Haram terrorist group in Nigeria in politics.
Of course, we acknowledge the
fact that in politics, numbers count; and any politician who has eyes to see
and ears to hear what is doing the rounds will snatch at any opportunity to
snuggle to potential voters.
We also acknowledge the strategy
used by the NPP in its outreach programme to capitalize on the religious
fervour of the people. That was why the party’s leaders spread their tentacles
far to reach the two main religious communities in Ghana—Christian and Muslim.
At
a larger level, narrowing this outreach to the Christian and Muslim segments of
the Ghanaian populace and exploiting their religious fervour this way has its
disadvantages, probably one of which might have influenced heavily the
electoral decision made by voters not subscribing to Christianity or Islam.
In
all their outreach efforts, the Akufo-Addo camp has been silent on how to deal
with adherents of the African Traditional religions that constitute a huge
chunk of the Ghanaian citizenry. Whether they reach out to them “Nicodemously”
or not can’t be confirmed; but the obvious silence on how the NPP relates to
such elements can’t be missed.
Are
they saying that they don’t need the electoral advantage from these African
Traditional religionists? Why are they also not the focus of their attention?
You
see, because they have skewed their outreach efforts to sideline those sections
of the religious community, they can’t appeal to their conscience for votes.
And in democracy, numbers count. So, there is a dark side to all that has been
happening; and the NPP is paying a big price at that front. Any doubt?
Indeed,
as I have said several times and will continue to say, God is not in the habit
of coming down from the heavens to help men solve their problems of existence.
He has already endowed us with the faculty to know how to handle our affairs
and live our lives before we account for our stewardship when he calls us unto
himself.
That
is why it is important to know that physical problems must be solved physically
and spiritual ones, spiritually. The general elections are not spiritual
problems. They are physical issues. Prayers are good for whatever they are but
it takes more than mere prayers to win general elections. What is happening now
(after the elections have been held and the results declared) is misplaced. The
time for prayers is long gone, if anything at all.
More
importantly, if prayers can redeem Akufo-Addo, why is he in London to have a “routine
medical check-up” instead of sitting back in Ghana to be prayed for or to pray
for himself to know what is happening in his system? His is a physical problem,
which is why he has dashed off to see his doctor in London; not so? If prayers
were enough to tackle such a physical problem, why hasn’t he sat back to pray
for relief?
Voting
is a physical act, not a spiritual one to warrant this flight into the
transcendental. So is it with the election petition that he has placed in the
dark chambers of the Supreme Court.
That
problem is a physical problem, which no amount of wailing, gnashing of teeth, sacrificing
of all manner of animals, or dipping into the River Jordan can solve (with
particular reference to Naman’s experience with Prophet Elijah). No amount of
howling day and night at prayer-and-fasting sessions can solve that problem.
It
is only the physical element (EVIDENCE/FACTS) to be adduced that can determine
how the pendulum swings at the end of the Supreme Court’s work. Why then will
anybody remain fixated on all these shows of religious fervour?
Indeed,
blood sacrifice—or any sacrifice of anything at all to the Supreme Deity or any
other spiritual entity—has its implications. It is a ritual that may make or
mar one’s aspirations. If you doubt it, read about Cain and Abel and you will
realize that in our time, the Cains outnumber the Abels.
What
I see happening in the Akufo-Addo camp is nothing but an attempt to force God
to undo what he has already done and blessed. Somebody is testing God’s
patience and has to beware of the wrath of God!!
More
importantly, exploiting the religious sentiments of unwitting people this way
is dangerous for the country. Ghana is an oasis of peace and stability in a
sub-region of political turmoil and should remain so. That is why I advise the
youths, especially, to shy away from politicians desperately seeking their support
to achieve their morbid political objectives.
General
elections are cyclical and one should adopt the attitude that will not
foreclose anything but ensure that a loss in one doesn’t necessarily mean the
end of the road. Election 2012 is gone, making room for Election 2016 and beyond.
The loss of one animal in the forest doesn’t mean the death of all other animals
there.
Those
who refuse to accept the fate that Election 2012 wrought for them and are
running around in circles—trying to turn every stone to use in challenging
reality—are doing nothing but digging their own graves. And we shall help them
lie therein.
I
shall return…
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