Probe the Hajj Council-FMC

06/03/08
Story: Musah Yahaya Jafaru

ANOTHER Muslim organisation, the Federation of Muslim Councils (FMC) Ghana, has added its voice to calls for a judicial probe into last year’s Hajj organised by the Interim Hajj Management Committee.
The Ghana Muslim Students Association (GMSA), the Coalition of Muslim Organisations, the Ahlussunna Wal-Jama’a (ASWAJ) and the Federation of Muslim Associations of Ghana (FOMWAG) have all called for a probe into the Hajj.
The FMC again called for the dissolution of the National Hajj Council (NHC) with the formation of “a new broad-based body” to handle Hajj matters in the country.
The appeal was part of proposals, which the FMC said were crucial “given the depth of the crisis and the accrued loss of the pilgrims’ and taxpayers’ money”.
The General Secretary of the FMC, Mr Mohammed Kpakpo Addo, who made the call at a press conference in Accra on Friday, said “this breach of authority will no longer be tolerated in this religious community where we have clearly defined leadership structure and governed by operational system and procedures”.
There was a delay in the departure of pilgrims for Saudi Arabia last year due to the delay in the arrival of flights, and the pilgrims under the circumstances slept at the Aviation Social Centre for about 10 days before they were airlifted to Mecca.
Mr Kpakpo Addo mentioned undue political interference in Hajj affairs and the scramble for authority by the stakeholders on the IHMC as some of the contributory factors to the difficulties of last year’s Hajj.
He therefore asked politicians to refrain from meddling in Hajj matters and leave the management of Hajj solely in the hands of any organisation that would be mandated to do so.
Mr Kpakpo added, however, that “the FMC is not against state participation in the operations of Hajj, since the element of state protocol and regulations cannot be zeroed out of the Hajj. What we are against are those impositions that render the system and procedures useless”, he stressed.
According to Mr Kpakpo, the FMC, in collaboration with the office of the National Chief Imam and other Muslims there “is . . . the process of setting up a new broad-based national body to handle Hajj matters in Ghana as soon as practicable”.
He, therefore, asked the government for “its fatherly blessing” to the initiative, stressing that it was a constitutional demand on the government to do so and that it was proper the FMC to organise the rank and file of the Muslim Community to brainstorm on a workable solution to the Hajj issue.
Mr Kpakpo expressed dissatisfaction over the trying conditions of the pilgrims prior to their departure.
He commended the National Chief Imam, Sheikh Usman Nuhu Sharubutu, for calling for tolerance, unity and peace among Muslims in the face of the difficulties.