News
Nigerien causes stir…. attacks mallam at K’si Central Mosque
A female migrant from Niger who was looking for a place to lodge at the Central Mosque at Aknatialine, Kumasi, threw decency to the wind and attacked one of the elders from the Zongo Community who she considered a stumbling block to her cause.
This nearly disturbed the relative peace in the area.
The migrant, whose name was not readily available, went to the Central Mosque last Friday with her belongings to look for a place of stay for a while as her colleagues do when they come to Ghana.
The migrant’s anger however reached its peak when the elder, Mallam Gariba Bolga approached her and said that there was no accommodation for her in the premises of the Central mosque as all the female migrants who lodged in the place earlier had already been driven away.
That did not go down well with the woman who fiercely pounced on the elder, pinned him down, amid insults.
The incident happened in the presence of The Spectator Reporter at about 8:30pm, when he saw lot of the youth trooping to the scene.
”Had it not been because the woman was carrying a little child on her back, the youth would have subjected her to severe beatings, though she was not spared some knocks for pouncing on the old man.”
“Allah, she was very fortunate she had a baby, she would have been taught a lesson,” a barber, Sky B, told this reporter.
Some residents of Akwatialine, particularly those close to the Central Mosque had always lived in anxiety following the influx of the migrants from Niger in the wake of the spread of COVID -19.
The number of migrants keeps soaring every day and residents doubted whether they had been tested against the COVID-19.
Niger is bordered by Libya in the North, Benin and Nigeria in the South, Burkina Faso in Southeast, Mali in the West and Chad in the East.
With the closure of the Nigerian border, it is possible for the migrants to come to Ghana through Burkina Faso and the question many of the residents are asking is whether they were tested for COVID-19 before entering.
Residents’ anxiety stemmed from a recent video that went viral on social media of foreigners entering the border at Paga with no official attending to them.
The migrants, mostly women, some nursing mothers and children aged between three and four, “hijacked” the walkway leading to the entrance of the Central Mosque, which they turned into a “kitchen” and a “bathroom”, especially in the evening.
It was in view of this that the elders and opinion leaders decided to sack them from the place.
”They are here in Kumasi as beggars and they are seen mostly “doing serious business” along the Amakom traffic light begging for alms, said a resident.
It is recalled that a sister paper, the Ghanaian Times, in its August 2, 2019 edition, carried a similar story titled, “Migrants Take over Walkway to Kumasi Central Mosque”.
In fact, from 4:30 pm throughout the night, the place was very busy as cooking and washing of clothes and bathing of little children became the order of the day, while they used the porches of the stores close to the mosque as their “bedrooms”.
They wash their clothes and hang them on the fence wall of the mosque.
Earlier, in a chat with some of them, who declined to mention their names, they claimed Ghanaians are religious, easily give alms, and would not harm them.
From Kingsley E. Hope,Kumasi
News
The Catholic Archdiocese of Accra to embark on Environmental Prayer Walk Against Galamsey
The Catholic Archdiocese of Accra in collaboration with the Conference of Major Superiors of Religious – Ghana (CMSR-GH), is organizing an Environmental Prayer Walk Against Galamsey on Friday, October 11, 2024, at 10am.
The walk will start from the Cathedral and end at Christ the King Parish, Cantonment.
According to a statement signed by Metropolitan Archbishop, Most.Rev. John Bonaventure Kwofie, this initiative reflects our civil, communal and religious commitment to our country and its ecosystem which is being destroyed.
In a statement issued, the church noted that “We shall engage in a Peaceful Prayer Walk, praying the Rosary which is our weapon against any adversaries. We shall congregate at the Holy Spirit Cathedral, Adabraka, to pray, go through the principal streets and end with Holy Mass at Christ the King Grotto, Cantonment, We shall present a petition to the Presidency at the Jubilee House.”
He asked all Priests to read this letter and announce this Prayer Walk in all Churches in the Archdiocese on Sunday, October 06, 2024, adding that Each Parish Priest or Priest-in-Charge is expected to bus his parishioners and support this event with bottles of water.
“I also ask the Knights of St.John International and Ladies Auxiliary, and the Knights and Ladles of Marshall to be present in their uniform and assist in coordination and maintenance of order,” the statement added.
“All Priests, Religious and Lay Faithful are expected to be present to show their commitment to our Country and its environment. May our Blessed Lady, who we beech in earnest prayer in this walk, intercede for our beloved country Ghana,” the statement concluded.
By Edem Mensah-Tsotorme
News
Democracy Hub: Ama Governor, eight other protesters granted GH₵70k bail each
Ama Governor and eight other Democracy Hub protesters have been granted bail, each set at GH₵70, 000 with two sureties.
As part of the bail conditions, the accused must report to the police once a week and deposit their Ghana cards at the court registry.
This decision follows an appeal against an earlier ruling by the circuit court, which denied bail to the nine individuals.
They are part of a group of 53 people charged with unlawful assembly, unlawful damage, assaulting a public officer, and offensive conduct conducive to breaching the peace.
These charges stem from their alleged involvement in disturbances during a protest against illegal mining (galamsey).
Despite opposition from the state, the court granted the bail application submitted by the defense lawyers. The other eight individuals granted bail include Emmanuel Gyan, Emmanuel Kwabena Addo, Ziblim Yakubu, Oheneba Prempeh, Philip Owusu Kobina, Desmond Akisbik, Von Coffie, and Sadik Yakubu.
Their release comes after protests demanding the release of the detained protesters erupted in Ghana and the UK. In Ghana, activists staged a three-day protest chanting slogans and holding placards that read “Free the Protesters” and “Justice for Democracy.”
The demonstrators emphasised the importance of the right to peaceful assembly and urged the government to respect citizens’ voices.
Simultaneously, supporters gathered outside the Ghana High Commission in the UK expressing solidarity with the protesters in Ghana and calling for the immediate release of all individuals arrested during the demonstrations.
Many attendees waved Ghanaian flags and carried signs bearing messages of support, drawing attention to the ongoing struggle for democratic rights in Ghana.
Source: Citinewsroom.com
